Area Code 271 – Lichinga

Geographic Overview

The +258 271 area code is a geographic National Destination Code (NDC) assigned to the city of Lichinga, the capital of Niassa Province in northwestern Mozambique. This code covers the urban and peri-urban zones of Lichinga and its immediate surroundings, including the administrative districts of Lichinga and Sanga. As a landline prefix, it routes calls to fixed-line subscribers connected via the public switched telephone network (PSTN) within this region.

Dialing Formats

To call a fixed-line number in Lichinga from within Mozambique, subscribers must dial the trunk prefix '0' followed by the area code '271' and the subscriber's 7-digit local number. For example, a local number such as 271 123 456 would be dialed as 0 271 123 456 from anywhere in the country. When calling from abroad, the international access code (e.g., 00 or +) is used, followed by the country code 258, the area code 271 (without the leading '0'), and the 7-digit subscriber number: +258 271 123 456.

Geographic and Administrative Context

Lichinga is the largest urban center in Niassa Province, located near the Malawi border at an altitude of over 1,300 meters. The area code 271 is exclusively assigned to this municipality and its immediate surroundings, distinguishing it from other Mozambican regions. The numbering plan follows the ITU-T E.164 recommendation, ensuring international interoperability. The subscriber number length is fixed at 7 digits, making the total national significant number (NSN) 9 digits when including the area code.

Caller Instructions

• Local callers (within Mozambique): Always dial the trunk prefix '0' before the area code, even if calling from a mobile phone. Example: 0 271 123 456.
• International callers: Replace the leading '0' with the Mozambique country code +258. Example: +258 271 123 456.
• Overlay considerations: Currently, there is no overlay code for Lichinga; the 271 code is unique to this region. However, as demand grows, future overlays may be introduced, requiring 10-digit dialing (including trunk prefix) for local calls.

Technical Notes

Fixed-line services in Lichinga are predominantly provided by Telecomunicações de Moçambique (TDM), the national incumbent. The network supports traditional PSTN services, with increasing migration to VoIP backhaul. Number portability is not yet widely implemented for fixed lines in Mozambique, so the area code remains a reliable indicator of the subscriber's geographic location. For accurate billing and routing, ensure the correct prefix is used, as misdialing may result in calls being routed to unintended destinations.