🇲🇿 The colours of Mozambique

Mozambique’s flag uses green, black, yellow, white, and red, each with a set meaning tied to the country’s land, people, and history. Green stands for the soil, black for the African continent, yellow for mineral wealth, white for peace and justice, and red for the struggle for independence and defence.

Where no official value is given, the swatch shows the colour family, not the exact shade.

• Mozambique’s flag is the only national flag with a modern firearm.
• Green, black, yellow, white, and red each have official meanings in law.
• The flag’s design is based on the FRELIMO party flag.
• There have been calls to remove the AK-47 from the flag.
• The flag’s colours are not fixed to specific shades in law.

The colours of the flag of Mozambique

Mozambique’s flag is made up of green, black, and yellow stripes separated by thin white lines, with a red triangle at the hoist. Each colour has an official meaning: green for the land, black for the continent, yellow for mineral resources, white for peace and the justice of the struggle, and red for the fight against colonialism and for national defence. The flag also features a gold star, a book, a hoe, and a gun, each with its own symbolism. These meanings are set out in the constitution.

How the colours were chosen of Mozambique

Before independence, Mozambique used the Portuguese flag. During the transition, the FRELIMO flag, which inspired the current design, was flown alongside the Portuguese flag. The first national flag after independence in 1975 featured diagonal stripes and a cogwheel, which was later removed. The current flag, adopted in 1983, kept the same colours and most symbols, but rearranged them and dropped the cogwheel. The meanings of the colours and symbols have remained consistent since independence.

Official shades and rules of Mozambique

The constitution defines the colours and layout of the flag, but does not specify exact shades. Different organisations have used varying Pantone codes for the colours. Regulations set out who may fly the flag and where, but in practice, many official buildings do not always follow these rules due to resource constraints.