Millennium bim Executive Director Januário da Costa Valente Júnior argued on Wednesday, June 10, that Mozambican small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) need to become better organized in order to improve access to financing, identifying the lack of structured financial information as one of the main barriers to business lending in the country.
Speaking during the panel “Presentation of Investment Opportunities in the Digital Sector” at the Mozambique-EU Business Forum 2026, the executive said that many business projects fail to move forward due to the absence of minimum viability requirements. He warned that support funds and credit lines may have limited impact if companies are not prepared to meet the criteria required by financial institutions.
According to Januário Valente, business lending in Mozambique remains below desirable levels, particularly among micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, many of which are family-owned and still lack adequate financial and documentary structures.
“Companies do not have the necessary information for banks to conduct a sufficiently robust analysis to approve financing,” he said, advocating for greater transfer of knowledge and international expertise to support the development of local businesses.
The executive highlighted that sectors such as agriculture, infrastructure and trade could benefit from experience gained in other markets, helping Mozambican companies develop stronger business models capable of attracting investment and financing.
Valente also called for stronger risk-mitigation instruments, such as guarantee funds and dedicated credit lines, arguing that these mechanisms can facilitate access to finance and enable more favorable repayment conditions.
He explained that Millennium bim has been adopting alternative assessment methods for micro-entrepreneurs who do not have organized financial statements, evaluating factors such as average account balances, banking behavior and payment history.
“We look at customer trends, financial behavior, irregularities within the system and other elements that help us assess their capacity,” he explained.
He added that the bank has increasingly relied on smaller initial loans to help entrepreneurs build a credit history and gain access to larger financing opportunities in the future.
Despite these efforts, Valente acknowledged that risk levels in this segment remain high, which continues to influence financing costs. Nevertheless, he stressed that the objective is to gradually bring more business segments into the formal financial system.
He also noted that ongoing digitalization efforts in Mozambique could help improve access to economic and financial information, making bank assessments more efficient and expanding financing opportunities for domestic companies.
Text: Germano Ndlovo
