Maputo, Aug. 5, 2026 (Lusa) - Mozambique's government on Wednesday justified its choice of the south of the country for the initial phase of the Mozambique LNG Academy on the grounds of the need to ensure suitable conditions for the timely training of technicians, whilst ensuring that other initiatives take place in Cabo Delgado province.
The position of Mozambique's Ministry of Education and Culture (MEC) follows criticism last week from the Forum of Civil Society Organisations of Cabo Delgado (Focade) and the Provincial Business Council last week regarding the initial training of 260 young people for the gas industry, held in the town of Matola, on the outskirts of Maputo. They consider this to represent a missed opportunity to strengthen technical education and local skills in the province hosting the Mozambique LNG project, led by the French company TotalEnergies.
In a clarification statement, the Ministry of Education (MEC) said that the partnership with TotalEnergies did not alter the priority given to the development of technical and vocational education in Cabo Delgado and forms part of a broader strategy to train staff for the oil and gas industry associated with the Mozambique LNG project, which has already enabled 1,765 young people to benefit from technical training, scholarships and work placements.
«Of these, 1,154 attended training courses at IFPELAC [Alberto Cassimo Institute for Vocational Training and Labour Studies] in Pemba, and 390 at the Pemba Industrial and Commercial Institute,» the statement notes.
Regarding the choice of Matola, the government said that the decision «stems from a technical assessment of the conditions at the vocational training institutions analysed», which concluded that the Matola Industrial and Commercial Institute meets «the requirements in terms of infrastructure, installed capacity, accommodation, workshops, laboratories and equipment essential to ensure the immediate launch of the programme, in accordance with the technical standards required by the liquefied natural gas industry».
The government also said that utilising the existing capacity at that institution would enable it to «meet the implementation schedule for the Mozambique LNG Project» and avoid delays that might necessitate training abroad.
The Mozambique LNG National Training Programme involves an investment of 191.5 million meticais (€2.6 million) by TotalEnergies and is aimed at 260 graduates in the fields of mechanics, electrical engineering, instrumentation and control, and process operations. Following a year of theoretical and practical training in Matola, the trainees will proceed to approximately two years of on-the-job training at the company's facilities in Afungi, in the Palma district, Cabo Delgado.
Responding to criticism regarding the alleged marginalisation of the province, the Ministry maintains that «Cabo Delgado remains at the heart of the strategy» for skills development in the gas sector, highlighting investments in technical education infrastructure in the province, including the construction and equipping of the Filipe Jacinto Nyusi Industrial and Commercial Institute in the town of Namaua.
According to the Ministry of Education and Culture (MEC), Cabo Delgado currently has 14 technical and vocational education institutions, six of which are state-run and have already trained 525 young people in electricity, oil and gas, including 150 in gas processing.
Mozambican researcher João Feijó warned, in an interview with Lusa on Monday, that the decision to hold the initial phase of the Mozambique LNG Academy in the south highlights the central government's «disregard» for the populations of the north, threatening to deepen social discontent in Cabo Delgado.
Lusa attempted to obtain a response from TotalEnergies to these local criticisms, but has so far been unsuccessful.
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