Maputo, Aug. 31, 2026 (Lusa) - Almost 3,000 exhibitors from 29 countries, including around 100 Portuguese-owned companies, are taking part in the 61st Maputo International Fair (Facim), Mozambique's largest business event, starting Monday.
Facim will run until 5 September across 14 pavilions at the Ricatla International Fair and Exhibition Centre in the Marracuene district of Maputo, with around 600 foreign companies, approximately 2,300 domestic exhibitors, and 55,000 visitors are expected.
In addition to national and international exhibitors, the fair will feature an agricultural exhibition and pavilions dedicated to various sectors of the economy and to public institutions, and will aim to promote Mozambican exports.
«We will also have the agricultural exhibition and the pavilion for the state-owned business sector, including the pavilion of the Zambezi Valley Development Agency,» Luís Machava, Director-General of the Agency for the Promotion of Investment and Exports (Apiex), which is responsible for organising the event, told Lusa.
The president, Daniel Chapo, will chair the official opening ceremony after 9:00 a.m. local time (8:00 a.m. in Lisbon) for this year's event, which takes place under the theme «Digital and energy transformation for a sustainable economy» and features Brazil as the guest of honour.
Organisers have also planned business forums and thematic seminars to promote partnerships and business opportunities, including the Mozambique-China, Mozambique-Brazil and Mozambique-United Arab Emirates forums.
More than 100 Portuguese-owned companies are expected to attend this year's Facim, reinforcing Portugal's presence in one of Africa's key markets, where around 500 Portuguese companies already operate.
According to the Portuguese Embassy in Maputo, the Portuguese delegation will be led by the Secretary of State for the Economy, João Rui Ferreira, who is visiting Maputo between 31 August and 2 September, and by the President of the Portuguese Agency for Investment and Foreign Trade (AICEP), Madalena Oliveira e Silva.
The Portuguese presence comes against a backdrop of «strong momentum and growing business cooperation between the two countries», at a time when Portuguese-owned companies are active in sectors considered strategic for the Mozambican economy, such as energy, agriculture, infrastructure, engineering, tourism and digital transformation.
Of the more than 100 Portuguese companies expected at Facim this year, around twenty will have their own exhibition stands, seeking to promote products, services and investment opportunities to Mozambican and international partners.
Running in parallel with Facim will be the Portugal-Mozambique Business Forum 2026, under the theme «Competitiveness, Local Content and New Investment Opportunities», scheduled for 1 September.
The Secretary-General of the PS, José Luís Carneiro, and the leader of the Socialist parliamentary group, Eurico Brilhante Dias, are also expected to attend the first day of Facim as part of the party delegation's visit to Maputo, with the aim of strengthening institutional relations and identifying opportunities for cooperation, according to a party source.
Portugal is Mozambique's seventh-largest supplier, with over 1,100 Portuguese export companies active in this market, accounting for trade in goods which, in 2025, exceeded €193 million. More than 40,000 Portuguese citizens are currently registered with the consular network in Mozambique, and almost 500 Portuguese-owned companies operate in the country, according to official figures.
PVJ/ADB // ADB.
Lusa
