The Minister of Education and Culture, Samaria Tovela, today laid the foundation stone for the construction of Pessene Secondary School, in the district of Moamba, Maputo Province. The new facility will be built by the Maputo Port Development Company (MPDC), representing an investment of around 67 million meticais, excluding school furniture.
With an estimated construction period of nine months, the school will have the capacity to accommodate approximately 539 pupils per shift, benefiting more than a thousand pupils across two shifts. The school complex will include 10 classrooms, a multi-purpose block, an administrative block, a water supply system, two toilet blocks, a multi-purpose sports field and a perimeter wall. The project also includes an area dedicated to agricultural and livestock activities, designed as an extension of the school’s educational space. As well as providing pupils with practical knowledge and skills in the fields of agriculture and animal husbandry, this space will support the production of food for consumption within the school itself.
The new school will serve young people from Pessene and several surrounding communities, helping to reduce the long distances currently travelled by pupils to attend secondary school and creating better teaching and learning conditions.
Speaking during the ceremony, the Minister for Education and Culture stated that the laying of the foundation stone marks “the start of a new chapter of development, progress and hope for the community of Pessene”. “Very soon, our pupils and teachers will have access to facilities that will enable them to learn and teach in a more suitable, welcoming and motivating environment, facilitating high-quality learning,” said Samaria Tovela.
The Minister also emphasised that the construction of the school embodies the Government’s commitment to improving teaching and learning conditions across the country. On this occasion, she called on the community, local leaders, parents and guardians to monitor and support the progress of the works, helping to ensure they are completed within the set timeframe.
The construction of Pessene Secondary School is directly linked to the MPDC’s presence in the region, through the Pessene Truck Staging Area. The area was established to address the growth in trucks’ traffic heading for the Port of Maputo, enabling better organisation of traffic flow, reducing pressure on National Road Number 4 and enhancing the safety of road users.
In September 2025, the MPDC also handed over the Pessene Health Centre, following a project that went beyond a simple refurbishment and created better conditions for patient care and for healthcare professionals to work.
The Executive Director of MPDC, Osório Lucas, explained that the investments made in Pessene reflect the company’s commitment to ensuring that the benefits of the Port of Maputo’s growth reach local communities. “The Port of Maputo is an economic infrastructure, but the impact of our growth cannot stop at the port’s physical boundaries. This growth must reach the communities and translate into greater security, employment, healthcare, education and opportunities,” he said. “In Pessene, we began by helping to organise the present. Today, we are helping to build the future — a future that we are bringing to life far beyond the boundaries of the Port of Maputo,” added Osório Lucas.
The Pessene Secondary School project was developed through a process of consulting the community and subsequently adapted to ensure compliance with the technical standards set by the Ministry of Education and Culture, the durability of the infrastructure and the financial sustainability of the investment. During the ceremony, the Minister of Education and Culture acknowledged the support provided by MPDC to the sector, describing the company as an important partner in promoting a more inclusive, equitable and high-quality education in Mozambique.
