Beira

Beira is the capital and largest city of Sofala Province in central Mozambique, where the Pungwe River meets the Indian Ocean. It is the country's fourth largest city by population after Maputo, Matola and Nampula, growing from 397,368 residents in 1997 to 530,604 in 2019, and its Port of Beira serves as a gateway for both Mozambique's central interior and the landlocked nations of Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi. Originally called Chiveve after a local river, it was renamed to honor the Portuguese Crown prince Dom Luis Filipe, titled Prince of Beira, who visited Mozambique in the early 20th century; the Portuguese Mozambique Company first developed it in the 19th century in place of Sofala as the country's main port, and the Portuguese colonial government directly developed it from 1947 until Mozambique's independence in 1975. Beira is the country's second largest seaport for international cargo after Maputo, and in March 2019 Cyclone Idai heavily damaged the city, destroying up to 90 percent of it.