In Cabo Delgado, a province in northern Mozambique better known in recent years for conflict and displacement than for commerce, a quieter story is unfolding — one told in tons of maize flour milled each day, in truckloads of hazardous waste safely recycled, and, above all, in jobs.

Thousands of micro, small, and medium-sized businesses are being reshaped by CONECTA Negócios, a World Bank Group–supported project built on a simple premise: lasting recovery in a fragile region depends on private sector growth that creates opportunities for young people. With roughly two-thirds of the population under age 25, Mozambique is one of the youngest countries in the world. And around 65 percent of Mozambicans under age 35 say they are looking for work, with nearly half saying they would like to start their own businesses.

In a region shaped by a decade of conflict and displacement, climate shocks, and economic disruption, CONECTA Negócios is putting the private sector at the center of Mozambique's recovery — and treating job creation not as a hoped-for byproduct of growth, but as the primary goal.

Jobs at the heart of recovery

Where humanitarian aid stabilizes, jobs sustain. Cabo Delgado's long-term stability depends on giving people a reason and a means to stay, work, and invest in their communities.

Access to finance remains one of the steepest barriers for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), in Mozambique. Banks are wary of clients with little or no credit history, collateral is scarce, and expansion capital is often out of reach. By providing financing through matching grants alongside targeted training programs, CONECTA Negócios is supporting MSMEs, the firms that already employ most people in the region and hold the greatest untapped potential to employ more.

"We have evolved from a small company with a vision for growth into an operation with greater capacity, over 120 employees, and innovative waste management solutions in Mozambique," says Nazmin Megji, who oversees quality, environment, and safety at MozCon, a local firm that has received support from CONECTA Negócios.

Originally focused on the oil and gas sector, the company retooled its business after market research revealed a gap: it is now the only firm in the region managing and recycling hazardous solid waste from regional megaprojects. With $150,000 of its own capital plus a $400,000 matching grant from CONECTA, MozCon has created over 80 new jobs and is developing partnerships with major industry players, including negotiations underway with French energy giant Total. Next, MozCon plans to use the same process to turn waste into motorcycle fuel, tackling both an environmental problem and an energy need at once.

To date, CONECTA has mobilized more than $5.5 million in private investment through matching grants for hundreds of enterprises, helping them invest in equipment, infrastructure, and productivity-enhancing growth, supporting more than 960 new and better jobs.

Finance that comes with a plan

Money alone cannot build a durable business, however. Lack of adequate training and preparation is cited by nearly a third of youth as one of the main barriers to employment. Crucially, every grant is paired with technical assistance — a deliberate design choice to ensure investment translates into productive, lasting outcomes rather than a short-lived boost.

For Madopera Comercial, that combination was transformative. The company set out to build a modern facility producing fortified maize flour in Cabo Delgado, backed by a total investment of $250,000 that included $75,000 of its own equity. With grant support, it installed a processing line capable of producing 50 tons per day, five times what it had been able to process before.

“With the support of the CONECTA Negócios Catalytic Fund, we increased our production capacity from 10 to 50 tons per day, doubled our workforce, and are ready to bring our products to the entire country,” says Conde Madopera, the company's Director General.

By April 2026, more than 7,000 micro-enterprises and around 700 small and medium-sized firms had completed targeted training programs. Businesses are receiving hands-on support to sharpen management, upgrade production, and reach new markets, with selected firms guided toward international quality certification, a passport to higher-value contracts.

"The CONECTA Negócios training sessions changed the way we think about and manage the company," says Douglas Norberto, manager at Nutri Verde. "We created new internal structures, improved our brand, and developed processes to ensure greater quality and competitiveness."

A multiplier that reaches the fields

The most significant impacts of this work often extend far beyond the walls of the businesses themselves. Madopera, for example, now sources maize from more than 60 smallholder farmers, integrating local producers into a value chain that provides reliable markets for their harvests while supplying fortified, nutritious flour to supermarkets and distributors. As the business grows, the benefits ripple outward, raising rural incomes, strengthening food security, and creating jobs beyond its own workforce.

That multiplier effect — where one growing enterprise pulls dozens of suppliers, farmers, and small producers into the formal economy — is exactly what a jobs-led recovery needs. In a region where stability depends on broad-based economic participation, the growth of a single business can help strengthen an entire local economy.

A foundation, not a finish line

Cabo Delgado's recovery will take time as the region continues to experience conflict and instability affecting businesses’ day-to-day operations. But in the workshops, fields, and facilities where CONECTA Negócios-supported enterprises are operating, a more durable foundation is emerging: resilient local businesses that can survive, grow, and hire, long after any single grant or mission has come to an end.

By combining financial support with skills development and market integration, CONECTA Negócios has demonstrated a tested model for driving job creation in fragile contexts. It is a model that does not wait for conditions to improve before investing in people. CONECTA looks beyond the challenges - low firm capacity, business disruptions, and difficulty accessing remote areas, and invests in people precisely because conditions are difficult — and trusts that capable, financed, local businesses are among the most powerful levers for improving them.

The jobs being created in Cabo Delgado today are not just livelihoods. They are laying the groundwork for a recovery driven not by aid, but by enterprise.

The story doesn’t end here. Ensuring MSMEs have the finance, skills, and technical support they need to grow and create jobs is critical to building stronger, more inclusive economies.

Join our event during the Annual Meetings to learn more about this work and how we can expand the resources MSMEs need to grow and create jobs.

Learn more and register here.