The Finance Minister, Carla Loveira, revealed that the State has a debt of 13.2 billion meticais ($204.7 million) to suppliers for the 2024 fiscal year, admitting that there may be other “potential debts” from acquisitions without the corresponding budget coverage.
Speaking in Parliament, the minister explained that by December 31 of last year, the debt to suppliers amounted to just over 30 billion meticais ($465 million) and was recorded under accounts payable.
According to her, 17.2 billion meticais ($266.8 million) had been paid by the third quarter of this year, leaving a liability of 13.2 billion meticais, “which is being paid according to the treasury plan.” She added: “In addition to the debts mentioned above and recognized in the State Financial Administration System, there is a potential for other debts incurred by sectors without the respective budget coverage. For these cases, the Government, through the Ministry of Finance, is designing a strategy for their regularization.”
The minister stated that the Government will issue a circular to collect information on debts from 2018–2025, validate data through the General Inspectorate of Finance, define the regularization method, establish an implementation schedule, and determine the portion of the debt to be settled using the 2026–27 Economic and Social Plan and State Budget (PESOE). “However, it should also be noted that, in parallel with the debt regularization process, strict measures will be introduced to prevent sectors from incurring expenses without budget coverage,” promised the Finance Minister.
Recently, the Government announced that it expects to soon regularize a debt of 1.5 billion meticais ($23.2 million) with Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), as well as waive penalties for those unable to pay contributions due to the post-election protests of 2024. This information is included in the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (Prece), approved on September 16 by the Council of Ministers.
“We plan to pay the State’s debt to suppliers of goods and services, estimated at 1.5 billion meticais. We also intend to strengthen budget control mechanisms, account reconciliation, scheduling, and payment prioritization,” she stated.
Previously, the Confederation of Economic Associations of Mozambique (CTA) had called for the State Budget to include an annual allocation of $50 million to pay overdue invoices, given the constraints caused to companies.
The private sector also suggested compensating the State’s debt to suppliers through tax obligations. “Within the recommendation regarding delays in paying invoices to suppliers of goods and services to the State, the CTA proposes that the Government compensate the debt through tax obligations, in order to reduce pressure on the state treasury.”
Source: Diário Económico
