Pan-African professional real-estate services provider Broll Property Group has observed various trends across the broad range of countries in which it operates. Highlighting and analysing these trends is an important part of Broll’s strategy to look ‘Beyond 2021’, in addition to ‘Strengthening the Core’ of the business as it focuses on the specific requirements of occupiers and investors during the Covid-19 pandemic. While this has disrupted the property market across the board, new niche asset classes are also emerging. Broll maintains a diversified portfolio of clients and services across 13 African countries, including Botswana, Cameroon, Eswatini, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Réunion, Seychelles, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia. Level 1 B-BBEE and 51% black-women owned, it has leased 737 325 m2 of retail space across Africa in the past five years.
While Mozambique waits for its oil and gas sector to bounce back, many companies are taking the opportunity to reorganize their office space and relocate to higher-grade buildings. This is, in fact, what we anticipate for the next 24 months, as companies are obligated to ensure that their workspaces comply with all Covid-19 regulations. The residential market in Maputo is mirroring the growth in the commercial sector, with an increase in the number, quality, and location of buildings to attract multinational clients. Some investors have been benefiting from lower prices due to the higher vacancy rates, and therefore they have an increased appetite for the lease segment market soon. Besides Covid-19, there are other factors that have affected the oil and gas projects under development in our country. These were halted temporarily, which has had a major impact, as they are the main drivers of our economy. The good news is that these are likely to kickstart again from 2022 to 2024.