His Excellency Ambassador Alberto Leonardo Cuvelo represents Mozambique in the United Arab Emirates at a moment of accelerating engagement between the two nations. A career diplomat shaped by protocol and multilateral service, he now works to convert warm political relations into measurable trade and investment.
When His Excellency Ambassador Alberto Leonardo Cuvelo took up his post in Abu Dhabi in 2024 as the Republic of Mozambique’s envoy to the United Arab Emirates, he arrived with an unusually precise understanding of what the assignment demanded. He had already spent four years in the country as Consul General in Dubai, watching the commercial relationship between the two nations develop at close range. His responsibility now is larger and more strategic. It is to ensure that the political warmth between Maputo and the Emirates translates into capital, trade and durable partnership.
The timing gives the work its weight. In January 2026, President Daniel Chapo travelled to the United Arab Emirates, meeting the Emirati leadership on the sidelines of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week and signing agreements that both governments presented as steps toward a deeper economic relationship. For an ambassador whose mandate is economic diplomacy, a head of state visit of that kind is not a ceremonial occasion. It is an instruction to deliver, and it places Ambassador Cuvelo at the centre of one of the most promising conversations now taking place between Africa and the Gulf.
Ambassador Cuvelo’s readiness for this responsibility is rooted in a career that began at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation in 1979 and has rarely paused since. His first posting took him to Mozambique’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York in 1980, an early exposure to multilateral negotiation at the highest level. Assignments in Lusaka followed, first as a third secretary and later, from 1992, as Chargé d’Affaires and head of mission for four years. He served as deputy head of mission in Jakarta and held senior positions across the directorates responsible for Africa, the Middle East, Asia and the United Nations. His academic formation matched that trajectory, with a degree in international relations and diplomacy from ISRI in Maputo and further study at the Instituto Rio Branco in Brasilia.
What distinguishes his record is his long service in state protocol, including senior protocol duties in the offices of both the President and the Prime Minister. Protocol is often mistaken for ceremony. In practice it is the discipline of managing relations between states with precision, and it teaches a diplomat how goodwill is created, preserved and, most importantly, converted into agreement. That is the exact capability the Mozambican mission in the Emirates now requires.
The Ambassador describes the embassy’s purpose in plain terms. Its central aim is to promote friendly and cooperative relations across political, economic and commercial fields, and to raise the economic relationship to the level already reached in diplomacy. Economic diplomacy sits at the core of that effort. The mission works to increase the flow of investment from the Emirates to Mozambique through business missions, seminars and sector focused roundtables, while also protecting the interests of Mozambican citizens living in or passing through the country.
The logic of the partnership is straightforward. Mozambique holds what Emirati investors increasingly wish to deploy capital into, and the Emirates hold the capital and technology Mozambique needs to develop its endowment. The country possesses world class natural gas reserves and critical minerals essential to the global energy transition, alongside gold, rubies, tourmaline and heavy sands. It offers more than thirty six million hectares of arable land and a young workforce, and it commands strategic ports and transport corridors at Maputo, Beira and Nacala that connect Southern, Central and Eastern Africa to international markets. Tourism adds a further dimension, from a coastline on the warm Indian Ocean to protected conservation areas and the heritage of the Island of Mozambique.
The government has worked to make these opportunities accessible. It has named agriculture, energy, industry, infrastructure and tourism as strategic sectors, adopted an Economic Acceleration Programme to reform the business environment, and lowered corporate tax in priority areas such as agriculture. Investment guarantees protect property rights and the transfer of profits abroad, and a double taxation agreement between Mozambique and the United Arab Emirates already exists, a practical foundation on which commercial ties can be built. The national investment and export promotion agency, APIEX, offers investors a single point of entry for company registration, licensing and fiscal incentives.
The conversation that follows explores how Ambassador Cuvelo intends to advance this agenda. He speaks about the current state of relations between Mozambique and the Emirates, the sectors he most wants investors and business leaders to understand, the tourism story he believes remains largely undiscovered, his duty to Mozambican citizens across the Gulf, and the wider question of how African missions might present the continent to Gulf partners with a stronger and more coordinated voice. His answers describe a country that he insists is no longer a promise, but a certainty.
Interview: H.E. Alberto Leonardo Cuvelo, Ambassador of the Republic of Mozambique to the United Arab Emirates
Q: Your Excellency, as Mozambique’s Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, what is the central mission you hope to advance during your tenure?
As the Embassy of Mozambique in the UAE, we remain committed to promoting and developing friendly and cooperative relations between our country and the United Arab Emirates in the political-diplomatic, economic, and commercial fields, among other areas of mutual interest, considering the existing opportunities for cooperation between both countries. Economic diplomacy continues to be one of our focuses, aiming to ensure an increase in the flow of investments from the United Arab Emirates to Mozambique, through business missions in both countries, seminars, and roundtables on specific topics in sectors capable of generating mutually beneficial sustainable gains. Similarly, as the Embassy of Mozambique in the United Arab Emirates, we value the continuous promotion and protection of the interests of our country and Mozambican citizens residing in or transiting through the United Arab Emirates.
Q: How would you describe the current relationship between Mozambique and the United Arab Emirates?
Mozambique and the United Arab Emirates enjoy strong relations of friendship, solidarity, and cooperation, which have been steadily growing. In this regard, we would like to highlight the recent visit of His Excellency Daniel Francisco, President of the Republic of Mozambique, to the UAE, in January 2026, an occasion that served for both countries to reaffirm their interest in elevating these relations to new levels, particularly in the economic and investment fields. During this visit, Mozambique and the United Arab Emirates signed important agreements, which we believe will further boost our bilateral cooperation.
Q: What are the most important priorities for the Embassy in strengthening bilateral relations between Mozambique and the UAE?
Within the framework of its relationship with the United Arab Emirates, Mozambique prioritizes the continuous strengthening and deepening of the friendly, solidarity, and cooperation relations between the two countries, seeking to boost economic and business relations to elevate them to the same level as the excellent political and diplomatic relations. With this approach, we intend to take greater advantage of the opportunities and potential existing in both our countries, combining the technology and capital held by the UAE with the abundance of natural resources in Mozambique, notably its world-class natural gas reserves and critical minerals essential to the global supply chains of the energy transition. Similarly, Mozambique has strategic ports and transport corridors linking Southern, Central, and Eastern Africa – Maputo, Beira, and Nacala – in addition to its enormous agricultural potential, and we believe that these sectors present a great opportunity for investment in Mozambique with the potential to generate mutually beneficial gains.
Q: Mozambique is increasingly seen as a country of significant opportunity. What sectors would you like investors and business leaders to understand better?
Mozambique has an advantageous geographical position, providing an ideal gateway to regional and international markets. Located in southern Africa, Mozambique is a land of opportunity, with stable investment legislation. The country has defined agriculture, industry, infrastructure, energy, and tourism as priority and strategic sectors for its development. By defining these sectors as strategic, the government intends to promote growth and diversification of the productive base, job creation, and equilibrium of the country’s trade balance. Among these sectors, I would like to highlight the following. Agriculture: with more than 36 million hectares of arable land and a young and easily trainable workforce, this sector constitutes the backbone of the Mozambican economy by allowing the production of various food and cash crops with a potential of feeding different value chains of the national and international markets.Energy: this sector is of vital importance since Mozambique possesses natural conditions for the generation of energy for the national market and for the region due to the availability of sustainable energy resources such as rivers, oil and natural gas, coal and sun, among others. The Energy sector offers several investment opportunities, which can be exploited by national or foreign investors either individually or in public-private partnerships.Mineral Resources: this sector has been driving the growth of the Mozambican economy with the start of exploration of the enormous reserves of natural gas and oil recently discovered which place the country on the map of the world’s largest producers of fossil fuels. This sector offers opportunities not only in the extraction of these resources but also in their transformation and value addition at national level. These resources include gold, rubies, tourmaline, precious stones, heavy sands, among others.
Q: Mozambique has a powerful tourism story, from its coastline to its islands, culture, and natural beauty. What should our reader know about Mozambique as a travel destination?
In fact, Mozambique is endowed with a great and enviable tourism potential, based on its natural and cultural resources. Tourism in Mozambique presents itself as an excellent opportunity for economic growth and diversification. The country has several conservation areas, among which we can highlight national parks and reserves, community conservation areas, official hunting areas, among others. Mozambique also has favourable conditions for the practice of tourism in its various segments, namely: leisure, business, sporting events (fishing, skydiving, water sports, etc.) and cultural events (traditional dances, festivals, music, gastronomy, etc.), cruises, ocean safaris (observation of the Big Five marine animals – sharks, manta rays, whales, dugongs, sea turtles – diving, etc.), wildlife observation, landscapes and birds, among others.For these reasons, the country has the potential to be among the main destinations in Africa given the quality of its coastal resources, diversity of experiences with flora and fauna, ecotourism, adventure and culture. Public-private partnerships present an unparalleled opportunity for the development of tourism and conservation areas, as well as for the benefit of communities, while protecting biodiversity.
Q: If you had to introduce Mozambique to an executive, investor, or traveller visiting for the first time, what would you want them to experience?
In short, I would say that Mozambique is a land of opportunity, with abundant natural resources, a young and skilled workforce, and a favourable legal framework that is constantly improving to create an ever-better business environment. Mozambique is no longer a promise; it is a certainty.
Q: The UAE is becoming an increasingly important partner for African nations. How do you view the evolving relationship between Africa and the Gulf?
The advancement of cooperation between Africa and Gulf countries creates new opportunities for the continent’s economic growth. Africa stands out for possessing attractive emerging markets with high growth and investment potential. Therefore, we believe that continued engagement between Africa and the Gulf offers growth opportunities for both sides.
Q: How can African diplomatic missions in the UAE work together to present a stronger, more coordinated investment narrative for the continent?
It is indeed important that diplomatic missions in the Emirates remain united to take full advantage of the opportunities offered by the host country. For example, we have been following with great interest the work that has been developed by the Emirates in the field of new technologies, especially in artificial intelligence, and we believe that this could be one of Africa’s pressing needs to overcome its technological shortcomings.
Q: When people read this profile, what is the one thing you would want them to understand about Mozambique’s future?
Mozambique is a rapidly growing country with enormous investment opportunities, despite persistent challenges such as climate change. Ongoing reforms aimed at, for example, improving the business environment, provide ample evidence that Mozambique’s future is very promising, and all investors are invited to seize the opportunity by investing their capital in the country, particularly in sectors such as agriculture, energy, mineral resources, and tourism.
