Nampula

Nampula is the capital city of Nampula Province in northeastern Mozambique. Also known as "The Capital of the North", Nampula is the centre of business in northern Mozambique. It has several western-style hotels, restaurants and shopping centres. It also has a small international airport connecting to Nairobi in Kenya and Johannesburg in South Africa, and is a transport hub for local transport in northern Mozambique.

Nampula
City
National Museum, Nampula
Flag
Nickname(s): 
A Capital Do Norte
Nampula
Coordinates: 15°07′S 39°16′E
Country Mozambique
ProvincesNampula Province
City Status1956
Named forWhampula or M'Phula
Government
 • TypeMunicipal Council
 • BodyConselho Municipal de Nampula
 • MayorPaulo Vahanle (RENAMO)
Elevation
360 m (1,181 ft)
Population
 (2017 census)
 • Total743,125
 • Rank3
Demonym(s)Nampulense
Time zoneUTC+2 (CAT)
Area code(s)(+258) 26
ClimateAw

With a population of 743,125 (2017 census),[1] it is the third largest city in Mozambique after Maputo and Matola. Nampula is also home to the Mozambique National Ethnographic Museum, several markets, cathedrals, mosques, universities and schools: both government and private. The city is also fairly diverse, with the native eMakhuwa population being the largest group but with a visible Indian, European, Chinese, and Lebanese population.

Etymology

The name "Nampula" is said to be derived to the eMakhuwa word "Whampula", which according to legend refers to a tribal leader of the area in the past.

Administration

Nampula is divided into seven administrative zones, which are also subdivided into localities, as follows:

  • Urbano Central
  • Anchilo
  • Muatala
  • Muhala
  • Namikopo
  • Napipine
  • Natikiri

Ever since the establishment of the city, Nampula has had numerous mayors:

  • Aurélio das Neves
  • Germano José Joaquim
  • Francisco Joaquim de Lima
  • Narciso João Iondela
  • Ishaca Abdul Ali Baraca
  • Dionísio Cherewa
  • Castro Namuaca
  • Mahamudo Amurane (Assassinated on the 4th of October 2017)
  • Paulo Vahanle

Population

Demographics
Year (census) Population[2]
1997 303,346
2007 471,717
2017 743,125

Religion

Nampula's dominant religions are Christianity and Islam. A small community of Hindus are also present in the city. Its Cathedral of Our Lady of Fatima is the archiepiscopal see of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Nampula.

Notable locals

Abel Xavier, a Portuguese football player, Carlos Queiroz, a Portuguese football manager formerly in charge of Real Madrid, and current AS Roma manager, Paulo Fonseca were also from Nampula, at that time a city of the Portuguese Overseas Province of Mozambique.

Education

The city is home to the Faculty of Health Science, Universidade Lurio. In 2009 a course in optometry was launched, the first of its kind in Mozambique. The course was supported through the Mozambique Eyecare Project. The other partners include the Dublin Institute of Technology, University of Ulster and Brien Holden Vision Institute. As of 2019, 61 Mozambican students have graduated with optometry degrees from Universidade Lurio (34 male and 27 female). The optometry course is now fully embedded within Universidade Lurio's systems and continues to recruit new students every year. Importantly, optometry is now registered as a profession in Mozambique, and is recognised through membership of African Council of Optometry (AFCO). Of the graduates, 26 are now working in public hospitals. In addition, 10 have university teaching posts (five male and five female). Seven of the graduates have enrolled on postgraduate programmes (five male and seven female).[3]

There is a Portuguese international school, Escola Lusófona de Nampula,[4] as well as four international English-medium schools, with the most notable being Stella Maris International School.

Transport
Nampula International Airport
  • The city has an airport, Nampula International Airport, which is located 4 kilometres away from the city centre. Kenya Airways currently operates thrice-a-week flights from Nairobi, while Airlink connects to Johannesburg in South Africa. LAM connects to domestic places like Pemba, Lichinga, Tete, Beira, Vilankulo, Quelimane and Maputo.
  • The Nacala railway serves the city. Additionally, a railway workshop is located in the city.
  • The bus stand, which can be accessed from any part of the city within 10 minutes, connects with places within Nampula province and in the neighbouring provinces. The tourist location Ilha de Moçambique, meaning Island of Mozambique, is located 200 km east of Nampula and is accessible by numerous minibuses.

Geography

The city of Nampula lies in the centre of the province of Nampula and is surrounded by plains and rocky outcrops. The city lies amongst rolling hills and mountains, typical of the interior of northern Mozambique.

Climate

Nampula has a tropical savanna climate (Köppen climate classification: Aw).

Climate data for Nampula
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 30.5
(86.9)		 30.4
(86.7)		 29.7
(85.5)		 28.6
(83.5)		 27.4
(81.3)		 25.7
(78.3)		 25.4
(77.7)		 27.4
(81.3)		 30.0
(86.0)		 31.9
(89.4)		 32.3
(90.1)		 31.1
(88.0)		 29.2
(84.6)
Daily mean °C (°F) 26.0
(78.8)		 25.9
(78.6)		 25.5
(77.9)		 24.4
(75.9)		 22.8
(73.0)		 21.0
(69.8)		 20.6
(69.1)		 21.8
(71.2)		 23.7
(74.7)		 25.5
(77.9)		 26.4
(79.5)		 26.2
(79.2)		 24.2
(75.5)
Average low °C (°F) 21.5
(70.7)		 21.5
(70.7)		 21.3
(70.3)		 20.2
(68.4)		 18.1
(64.6)		 16.3
(61.3)		 15.8
(60.4)		 16.2
(61.2)		 17.4
(63.3)		 19.1
(66.4)		 20.5
(68.9)		 21.4
(70.5)		 19.1
(66.4)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 227.6
(8.96)		 216.4
(8.52)		 181.1
(7.13)		 81.1
(3.19)		 23.2
(0.91)		 15.5
(0.61)		 22.1
(0.87)		 8.1
(0.32)		 5.6
(0.22)		 24.2
(0.95)		 82.9
(3.26)		 183.8
(7.24)		 1,071.6
(42.19)
Average precipitation days 14.7 13.2 13.3 8.1 4.0 3.4 3.8 1.7 1.3 2.3 5.7 11.1 82.6
Source: World Meteorological Organization[5]
  • Catholic Church in Nampula, Mozambique
  • A Makhuwa family in Nampula
  • Local boys in Nampula

References
  1. http://allafrica.com/stories/200911240886.html
  2. "Mozambique: largest cities and towns and statistics of their population". World Gazetteer. Retrieved 2008-06-18.
  3. "Addressing avoidable vision impairment in Mozambique and the Africa region" (PDF). Development in Practice. 2019.
  4. "ESCOLAS COM CURRÍCULO PORTUGUÊS EM MOÇAMBIQUE" (Archive). Direção de Serviços de Ensino e Escolas Portuguesas no Estrangeiro (DSEEPE) of the Portuguese Education Ministry. Retrieved on October 26, 2015.
  5. "World Weather Information Service–Nampula". World Meteorological Organization. Retrieved April 19, 2017.

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