Five Years Promoting Sustainable and Safer Mobility in Maputo Metropolitan Area

Maputo 18 January 2023– The fifth edition of the Sustainable Mobility Week was recently marked in Maputo with several activities being held and attended by hundreds of city residents and visitors.

The Sustainable Mobility Week (SMW) of Maputo Metropolitan Area, was conceived in 2017 with the intention of strengthening coordination and collaboration among different stakeholders to improve mobility, as well as debating and raising awareness on challenges related to equitable, safe and inclusive transport and road safety in the area.

Maputo Metropolitan Area, in Mozambique, is a conurbation generated among the cities of Maputo, Matola, Boane and Marracuene, facing rapid urban growth and sharing interrelated challenges and benefits for equitable distribution of basic services.

The event was first established by the Maputo Metropolitan Transport Agency (AMT) and the above-mentioned Municipalities, through the facilitation of UN-Habitat and a few other mobility partners.

Currently, it has turned into an annual event with more than 25 partner organizations, including public national, metropolitan and municipal institutions, developing partners, civil society organizations, academia and private sector.

From the first to the latest SMW editions, the participating partners increased from 7 to over 25 and the events from 8 to up to 16 per year. Also, every year, at least 1,000 people have been estimated to be reached through the SMW, among Maputo, Matola and Boane Municipality and Marracuene District.

The latest event was held under the slogan “Innovating to find new pathways”, and it aimed at promoting the creation of innovative solutions to facilitate the implementation of an active, accessible, inclusive and sustainable mobility for all, leaving no one behind.

“The SMW is a moment of reflection, a moment for us to share our experiences and see what possibilities exist among our municipalities, so that we can better articulate and be even more integrated, and thus providing citizens with good quality transport”, said the Mayor of Boane Municipality, Mr. Jacinto Loureiro.

Francisco Luis, representing the Maputo Skateboard Association, said that “this type of event is fruitful since it shows that there is a need for public spaces for skateboard, bicycle and rollerblade users, which is something that the city is missing”. He has also emphasized that “skaters circulate on streets and while doing so they put their lives at risk, therefore this type of event brings attention to decision makers about the need to be concerned with public mobility”.

Rua de Bagamoyo, in Maputo city, is a best practice in this sense. UN-Habitat supported Maputo Municipal Council in closing this historical street to traffic by organizing a placemaking event, in order to demonstrate the value of the area as a public space for pedestrians and cyclists. As a consequence, and thanks to the advocacy of the Municipality, in 2023 the street is going to be closed permanently to traffic and be requalified as a green valuable public space for all.