The country is drained by five principal rivers and several smaller ones with the largest and most important the Zambezi. The country has three lakes, Lake Nyasa or Malawi, Lake Chiuta and Lake Shirwa, all in the north. Mozambique has a tropical climate with two seasons. A wet season from October to March and a dry season from April to September. Climatic conditions, however, vary depending on altitude.
Rainfall is heavy along the coast and decreases in the north and south.
Cyclones are also common during the wet season. Other ethnic minorities include Europeans, mainly Portuguese, Euro-Asians and Indians. The official language is Portuguese which is used for government, education and commerce purposes. A variety of local tribal languages are also widely spoken. In 1983 Mozambique announced that it would liberalize its economic policies in an attempt to increase investment in private enterprise.