Flag of Mozambique
Africa
Quick Facts
- Capital
- Maputo
- Flag adopted
- 1983
- Population
- 34,090,466
- Area
- 801,590 km²
- Languages
- Portuguese
- Currency
- Mozambican metical (MT) — MZN
- Demonym
- Mozambican
- Government
- presidential republic
- Subregion
- Eastern Africa
- Driving side
- Left
- Timezones
- UTC+02:00
- Independence
- 1975
Religions
- Roman Catholic 27.3%
- Muslim 19.1%
- Pentecostal 16.7%
- Saio/Zione 16.3%
- None 13.5%
- Other 4.3%
- Anglican 1.7%
- Unspecified 1.2%
About This Flag
Three horizontal bands of green (top), black bordered by white stripes (center), and yellow (bottom), with a red triangle on the hoist side bearing a yellow five-pointed star overlaid with an open book, a crossed rifle, and a hoe. The flag was adopted on May 1, 1983, modifying the original 1975 independence flag.
Mozambique's flag is the only national flag in the world to feature a modern firearm. The AK-47 rifle represents defense and vigilance, the hoe stands for agriculture, and the book symbolizes education.
The star represents the people's aspirations.
What the colors & design mean
Green represents the land's riches, black stands for the African continent, yellow symbolizes mineral wealth, white represents peace, and red commemorates the armed struggle for independence. The AK-47 represents defense, the hoe agriculture, the book education, and the star the people's ideals.
Pattern: Horizontal Stripes
Bordering countries (6)
Fun Facts
- Mozambique is the only country in the world with a modern assault rifle on its national flag; the AK-47 also appears on the national coat of arms.
- There have been multiple parliamentary debates about removing the rifle from the flag, but proposals have been repeatedly voted down.
- Mozambique is the only member of the Commonwealth of Nations that was never part of the British Empire; it was a Portuguese colony until 1975.
- The Bazaruto Archipelago off the Mozambican coast is home to one of the last viable populations of dugongs in the western Indian Ocean.
Similar looking flags
These flags share similar colors and patterns:
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