Exploring Africa’s poultry powerhouses – a spotlight on Mozambique
In this 3rd article in this series, Sebastiane Ebatamehi from The African Exponent gives a comprehensive overview of the country in 8th position in the top 10 poultry producing countries in Africa in 2025: Mozambique.
Mozambique has emerged as one of Africa’s fastest-growing poultry producers by percentage terms, showing a strong compound annual growth rate of 8.9% from 2013 to 2024 among key producers.
IndexBox’s 2024 market data places Mozambique among the countries whose poultry output rose more sharply than those of the larger producers, though its absolute volumes still lag behind the top producers like Egypt, South Africa, and Morocco.
In 2023/2024, Mozambique produced approximately 152,784 mt of chicken meat, up about 4% from 2022, alongside record egg production at 28,667,207 dozen eggs. These gains highlight both rising domestic demand and improved capacity in poultry farming and processing.
Enhancing the agri-food value chain
Much of Mozambique’s growth in poultry production is attributable to public-private investment, targeted policy support, and the expansion of commercial poultry operations. A key recent development is the US$33 million investment from the African Development Bank through the PROCAVA program, aimed at enhancing the agri-food value chain including poultry.
This financing is intended to help improve infrastructure, including feed mills, hatcheries, and slaughter/processing facilities, and to support small-scale producers as they are aggregated into more efficient value chains.
Hampered growth
Nevertheless, Mozambique’s poultry sector faces significant headwinds that could undermine its momentum. In early 2025, post-election unrest disrupted supply chains, access to feed and incubators, and caused widespread losses estimated at around US$300 million. The protests not only halted many operations but also exposed the vulnerability of the sector to political instability.
Meanwhile, feed input costs, disease control challenges, and weakness in cold chain and logistics infrastructure remain persistent obstacles. Analysts caution that without stronger policy consistency and investment in bio-security, gains could be reversed.
While Mozambique’s gains are significant, it is to be seen if Mozambique could rise several places in the rankings by 2028.
In the next article we zoom in on Kenya.
