Mozambique 40th Independence celebrations

Six famous Mozambicans you really should know.

Eusébio – the world’s greatest striker

Considered one of football’s all-time greats, the man known

as the Black Panther was born Eusébio da Silva Ferreira in

Lourenço Marques in 1942.

He went on to play for Benfica and represent Portugal at

international level, scoring 790 goals for club and country.

Samora Machel, revolutionary leader

Samora Machel led the revolution against colonial

occupiers Portugal as head of the rebel movement

Frelimo.

Independence for Mozambique was precipitated by a coup

in Lisbon in 1974, and following peace talks, Machel

became the first president of what was to become a

Marxist-Leninist state in 1975.

Lizha James – pop diva

Lizha James is one of Mozambique’s major exports.

Her music is enormously popular in the Lusophone world.

Born Elisa Lisete James Humbane in Maputo, James has

many Channel O Music Video Awards under her belt.

Photo: Courtesy YouTube

Mia Couto – acclaimed author

António Emílio Leite Couto is Mozambique’s most famous novelist.

He has been awarded the greatest accolade in Portugese

Literature, the Camões Prize , and was the recipient of the

Neustadt International Prize for Literature in 2014.

He was shortlisted for the 2015 Man Booker International Prize.

He lives in Maputo, where he works as a biologist.

Carlos Queiroz – soccer coach

Carlos Manuel Brito Leal Queiroz was born in Nampula,

Mozambique and, while he had a mediocre playing career

in Africa, his talents as a manager came to the fore in

Europe.

At club level he has coached Read Madrid and worked as

an assistant to Alex Ferguson at Manchester United.

He has taken three international sides to the FIFA World

Cup: Portugal, South Africa and Iran.

Graça Machel - humanitarian

Graça Machel is the only woman ever to have been the first lady of two countries.

She is the widow of two of Africa’s great statesmen, Mozambique’s Samora Machel and South Africa’s Nelson

Mandela.

However, she was a politician in her own right, and served as Minister of Education in Mozambique.

She now focuses on international humanitarian work, with a particular focus on children.