The 2025 budget proposal states that 4,142 new workers will be hired for the public sector. These authorized hires will cost more than 1.2 billion meticals (18.6 million US dollars), raising personnel expenses to 210.7 billion meticals (3.2 billion US dollars), which accounts for 60% of the projected operational expenditure of the State.
According to the draft law on the 2025 Economic and Social Plan and State Budget (PESOE), approved by the Assembly of the Republic, the Government will authorize the hiring of 2,922 workers for the education sector, including general, technical, higher education, and vocational training. An additional 724 will be hired for the health sector, 351 for agriculture—specifically as forest rangers—and 145 for justice administration bodies.
“For the remaining sectors, the Executive will continue to monitor staff mobility in order to contain the growth of the wage bill,” states the document prepared by the government of Daniel Chapo, who took office in January.
The document recalls that in 2024, 4,880 workers were hired, of which 2,900 were allocated to the education sector and 1,294 to the health sector. In 2023, there were over 12,000 new entries into the State apparatus, with more than 5,400 in education and 4,150 in health.
For this year, the State plans to spend a total of 205.5 billion meticals (3.1 billion US dollars) on salaries and wages, representing an increase of more than 1.3% compared to the 202.8 billion meticals recorded in 2024.
“As part of the rationalization of public spending, the commitment to controlling salary and remuneration expenses and stabilizing public debt remains, as these have been the main components exerting pressure on the State Budget,” it states.
To ensure short-term control of the wage bill and establish a sustainable medium-term trajectory, restrictions on new hires will be reinforced, as well as “the reassessment of subsidies granted” to Civil Servants and State Agents (FAE), and measures will be implemented to strengthen the control of human resources in the public administration.
“It is expected that public spending as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) will reduce to 30.7% by 2027, compared to around 33.2% of GDP in 2024, in line with fiscal consolidation objectives. In the medium term, expenses related to operational costs, particularly salaries and wages, pensions, and debt servicing, will continue to represent a significant challenge to the sustainability of public finances,” it adds.
The draft law for the 2025 Economic and Social Plan and State Budget is estimated at 512.7 billion meticals (7.9 billion US dollars). Among the main macroeconomic assumptions supporting it are a 2.9% GDP growth and an average annual inflation rate around 7%.
The projections also point to revenues amounting to 385.8 billion meticals (5.9 billion US dollars). The PESOE is a document that defines the key economic, social, and financial policy objectives of the State, as well as identifying the expected revenue to be collected, actions, and resources necessary for its implementation.
