Business
Reverse brain drain from Europe to Africa: Mozambique
Tropical beaches. Grilled prawns. Fine coffee. And an economy growing by almost 8 percent a year.
Who wouldn’t be tempted by Mozambique?
“Here we can have a new life – a good life,” says 32-year-old Marcio Charata. And he is not talking about a few weeks’ holiday in the sun.
In his grey suit and tie, Mr Charata is one of a growing stream of unemployed Portuguese, fleeing the economic storms sweeping Europe and heading to their country’s former colonies – Mozambique, Angola and Brazil – in search of jobs and opportunities.
“Here is the opposite of Portugal – each day you see the economy of Mozambique is growing,” says Mr Charata.
There are also hints of a backlash from the Mozambique public, who have already taken to the streets recently to protest against rising prices and the country’s growing wealth gap, and who now worry about a creeping re-colonialization.
“They’ve been stealing jobs,” says Carlos Litulo, a local photographer and entrepreneur.
Much will depend on how Mozambique’s government manages these boom years – whether they can spread the wealth widely enough and ensure that a soaring GDP translates into jobs for locals.