For over 500 years Mozambique was under complete Portuguese domination, which left the Mozambican economy underdeveloped and distorted. Overall, Portuguese colonization was characterized by the brutal use of coercive force to extract goods and services from indigenous populations, with a strong impact on relations and production within Mozambican society. Compared to other European nations, Portugal had many economic and human limitations, giving the The imperative of effective occupation advocated at the Berlin Conference (1884/1885), Portugal was forced to use several colonization strategies. After the British and French experience, the Portuguese colonization system opted for the creation of "Majestic Companies": approximately 2/3 of the Mozambican territory was under the administration of different companies; in the central region of the country (Mozambique Company); in the province of Zambezia (Zambezi Company) and in the northern region of the country (Niassa Company). The southern region was left under the direct administration of the Portuguese government, with most of its capital by E...