
Maputo, 15 May (AIM) – Mozambican commercial banks claim they are are facing a shortage of money to fund consumer loans and projects as a result of the high rate of compulsory reserves demanded by the Bank of Mozambique.
According to Alfredo Mondlane, head of Economics and Market Research at the bank FNB-Moçambique, a subsidiary of the South African FirstRand Group, cited by the independent daily “O País”, speaking on Tuesday during a debate on the role of NGOs in the Mozambican economy, in order to solve the shortage of money, the current 39 per cent of compulsory reserves must be reduced.
Mondlane noted that, in January, the Bank of Mozambique reduced its reference interest rate from 17.25 to 16.5 per cent, but he stressed that cutting interest rates is not the only requirement.
“In order to stimulate access to credit, we need the reserve requirement ratio to fall as well, because banks need their product to support the real economy, and the banks’ product is money. At the moment, the 39 per cent coefficient demands other challenges from commercial banks, and this makes access to credit more difficult”, he said.
Commercial banks, he stressed, are still finding it difficult to grant loans and the lack of funding makes it impossible for many companies to implement projects that could turn around the country’s economic situation.
“The situation doesn’t allow for liquidity to energize the economy and households”, he claimed. “As a result, consumers suffer the most.”
According to Mondlane, at a time when oil and gas megaprojects are the country’s biggest bet to boost the economy, there is a need to fight and expel the Islamist terrorists that have been plaguing the northern province of Cabo Delgado, in order to attract more investors.
“Obviously this can have an impact on the start of exploration of these projects, and we need these projects to start in order to give greater confidence to investors, in order to catapult the national economy”, he said.
(AIM)
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