CoworkLab: developing a coworking strategy in Mozambique (2015)

This 2015 conference deck described Cowork Lab’s development of three coworking spaces in Maputo, Mozambique, which had started operating in November 2012. It examined whether coworking could provide both commercial sustainability and an enjoyable community experience, while acknowledging that workspace rental remained necessary to pay operating costs. The presentation placed this question within Maputo’s property market and reproduced Knight Frank figures comparing office, commercial, industrial and residential costs across ten African cities. For Maputo, the chart listed office space at USD 37.50 per square metre, commercial space at USD 40.00 per square metre, industrial space at USD 10.00 per square metre and residential property at USD 6,000 per month. The deck argued that operators needed to remain financially aware when evaluating real-estate costs. Its closing recommendations used wildlife metaphors to describe controlling overheads, beginning with a small operation, preserving the essential qualities of the workspace, securing enough room for expansion and growing the member community. The presentation framed these choices as practical conditions for developing a financially sustainable coworking operation in the Mozambican market.

Key findings

• Cowork Lab had developed three coworking spaces in Maputo from November 2012.
• The deck listed Maputo office space at USD 37.50/m² and commercial space at USD 40.00/m².
• Maputo industrial space was listed at USD 10.00/m², while residential property was listed at USD 6,000 per month.

Presented by Fernando Mendes, Cowork Lab, at Coworking Europe 2015