Sale of alcoholic

Stalls near educational establishments in Maputo city continue selling alcoholic beverages, in violation of municipal regulations. The situation worries students, parents and guardians, who say that the sale of alcohol near schools could compromise both the learning and teaching processes. Despite awareness-raising campaigns and the seizure of alcoholic beverages by the municipal police in the past year, there are still some schools with stalls selling alcohol nearby, they say.

A ‘Notícias’ team visited schools in the KaMubukwana Municipal District and found several nearby commercial establishments selling alcoholic beverages in violation of the municipal ban.

Secondary schools in Mubukwana, Malhazine, Comunitária da Igreja Metodista Unida are cases in point. Marcos Gonçalves, the guardian of one student affected, said that the sale of alcohol in the vicinity of educational establishments was a factor facilitating its acquisition by some students.

Lígia Martins, a student, said that she had seen colleagues taking class under the influence of alcohol, a situation that disturbed the studies of others. This situation could compromise performance, she said, with students skipping class to consume alcoholic beverages.

Speaking for the Municipal Police in the city of Maputo, Arsenia Miambo said that the City Council was continuing to work on the problem, and that the police were continuing to raise awareness among vendors, students, parents and guardians in an operation called ‘Polícia-Comunidade’ [Police-Community]. She added that the city routinely inspects commerce in the vicinity of schools within the scope of its ban on informal trading in inappropriate places.