MAPUTO — Bad roads, floods and now, rebel attacks. It is little wonder Mozambique is considering using the sea as an alternative to road transport. An expected natural gas boom in the remote north is adding impetus to the idea, but can the country revitalise once busy coastal lanes that have fallen into disuse?This month Mozambique Transport Minister Gabriel Muthisse established a task force headed by the state-owned Portos e Caminhos de Ferro de Moçambique (CFM), to investigate how its moribund system of coastal shipping routes, or "cabotage" could be reinvigorated.You only have to look at Mozambique’s geography to understand the country’s profound links to the sea. Its 2,500km coastline is only about 30km shorter than SA’s, but the country is one, long slice of land, hugging the coast.Arab traders dominated commerce along much of the coastline as far back as the 14th century. Later, under Portuguese colonial rule, up to five cabotage companies (mostly carrying cargo) plied their t...
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