Republic of Mozambique

STATEMENT Of HIS EXCELLENCY PAULO CHACHINE, MINISTER OF INTERIOR OF THE REPUBLIC OF MOZAMBIQUE, AT THE SIGNING CEREMONY OF THE UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION AGAINST CYBERCRIME

Hanoi , October 2025

• His Excellency Luong Cuong, President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam;
• His Excellency António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations;
• Your Excellencies, Heads of State and Government;
• Your Excellencies, Ministers, Representatives and Heads of Delegations of the Member States present here;
• Your Excellencies, Heads of Diplomatic Missions and Ambassadors of the Member States present here;
• Your Excellencies, Representatives of International Organizations;
• Ladies and Gentlemen.

1. At the outset, allow me to express, on behalf of His Excellency Daniel Francisco Chapo, President of the Republic of Mozambique and Commander-in-Chief of the Defence and Security Forces, and on my own behalf, our profound gratitude for the invitation extended to the Republic of Mozambique to participate in this important event. Our appreciations are also extended to the People and Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam for the warm welcome, hospitality, and kindness we have received since our arrival in this beautiful and wonderful city of Hanoi.

2. The Republic of Mozambique is participating in this Signing Conference of the United Nations Convention Against Cybercrime, an international legal instrument of great relevance, convinced that it represents a fundamental milestone in global efforts to combat this growing threat. We are also convinced that the entry into force of this Convention will provide greater security for our citizens, companies, service-providing institutions, as well as to the flow of services and assets, strengthening trust in the digital environment.

3. In view of growing cyber threats, the approval of this Convention is part of the ongoing effort of the International Community, of which our country is a member, in the framework of the adoption of complementary strategies to strengthen the security and protection of our citizens, public and private institutions, and States.

4. Thus, we would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the United Nations for once again assume the lead in global efforts to strengthen cyberspace security, which is now an essential tool for conducting our lives, the economy, the work on various fronts of development, communication, and projection of our collective future.

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen;

5. Cyberspace has increasingly been used as a privileged platform for the operation of transnational criminal networks, which use the digital field to target systems critical to human life and socio-economic development, undermining citizens’ trust in the reliability of information and communication technologies, making the regular and secure functioning of institutions impossible and, ultimately, threatening the sovereignty of States.

6. In this context, crimes such as terrorism, drug and human trafficking, money laundering, electronic fraud, child pornography, the dissemination of fake news, and the promotion of hate speech are phenomena that have undermined harmonious coexistence and weakened trust between citizens and institutions, even the relationship between States, which requires joint and effective responses from all of us.

Ladies and Gentlemen;

7. Mozambique considers, in particular, Information and Communication Technologies and the digital world, in general, instruments of socio-economic development and modernization of public administration, as well as promoting the effective functioning of private sector institutions.

8. Given this awareness of the associated risks, Mozambique has been developing and implementing laws, regulations, and policies to strengthen cybersecurity nationwide. Some actions in this area include:
9. The approval, in 2017, of the Electronic Transactions Law;
10. The approval, in 2021, of the Cybersecurity Policy and the respective Strategy for implementing its twenty-five (25) initiatives;

1. The Establishment of the National Cyber Security Incident Response Team, which coordinates the creation of a National Network composed of Sectoral, Institutional, Provincial and Municipal Cyber Security Incident Response Teams;

1. The establishment of the Mozambique Digital Certification System, for authentication and electronic signature of documents, ensuring security, credibility and promoting digital transformation;

1. The approval, in 2023, of the Regulation for the Registration and Licensing of Intermediary Electronic Service Providers and Digital Platform Operators;

1. The preparation of the Cybersecurity Law Proposal, the Cybercrimes Law Proposal (currently being considered by the Parliament of the Republic of Mozambique) and the Personal Data Protection Law Proposal, which is currently being finalized; and

1. The development of the Cloud Computing Regulation as well as of the Data Centre Regulation, aimed at strengthening national sovereignty over data.

9. These efforts are further complemented by the ongoing processes of developing the Digital Transformation Strategy and the Artificial Intelligence Strategy, instruments that will serve to support Mozambique’s effective integration into the global digital economy.

Excellencies,

10. We recognize that no country, including ours, can confront cyber threats alone. Therefore, Mozambique has strengthened international cooperation in this area, with emphasis on:

1. The ratification, in 2019, of the African Union Convention on Cybersecurity and Personal Data Protection;

1. The ongoing process for accession to the Budapest Convention, following an invitation issued in February 2024; and

1. Today, at this noble session, with the signing of the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime, Mozambique reaffirms its commitment and political will to join the concert of nations striving for a safer and more inclusive cyberspace.

11. In this vein, Mozambique actively participated, through a multisectoral and multidisciplinary team, in the sessions of the United Nations Ad Hoc Committee that drafted this United Nations Convention against Cybercrime over the past four years. Therefore, we believe that this legal instrument responds, in a balanced manner, to our legitimate security concerns.

12. Our participation in this Convention Signing Ceremony reaffirms Mozambique’s commitment to this process and the conviction that the Convention will help transform digital environments into spaces of peace, security and cooperation, serving the socio-economic development of humanity.

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen;

13. Finaly, we would like to congratulate all United Nations Member States, international organizations and other stakeholders for the determination and spirit of cooperation demonstrated in concluding this important legal instrument that we will sign today.

14. We especially congratulate the Members of the United Nations Ad Hoc Committee, its Secretariat, the Vice-Chairs and its Chair, Ambassador Faouzia Boumaiza Mebarki, for the tireless and excellent work that culminated in this historic instrument.

15. The Republic of Mozambique hopes that this Convention will enter into force quickly and undertakes to complete all necessary internal procedures for its prompt ratification and incorporation into the national legal system.

Thank you very much for your kind attention!