Paper short abstract:

This paper analyses the community transformation and emerging conflicts from Chinese mining exploration project in Angoche, Mozambican local community, and argues that the project contributes to destruction of community livelihoods with complicity of the authorities.

Paper long abstract:

After nearly 10 years of heavy mineral sands prospection in Mozambique by international companies, the Irish multinational Kenmare resources plc pioneered its exportation in 2007. The Chinese companies Jinan Yuxiao Group (2009) and Haiyu Mozambique Mining Company (2010) followed, seeking to explore one of the biggest heavy mineral sands deposits in Africa located along the Mozambique´s coast line. Nevertheless, early in the exploration process, the extractive patterns of the Asian company and their engagements with the local communities started revealing signs of depredation, thus leaving trails of conflicts. Analyzing the community transformations and emerging conflicts between these actors, this article investigates their potential causes through the emerging production relations among the community, the company and the state institutions alongside the pre-exploration and exploration phases. The article suggests that the patterns of the project implementation contributes for the destruction of the community livelihoods under the inert and complicity watch of the local authorities.