Mozambique may have lost over 383 million dollars as result of demonstrations

Maputo, 12 Nov (AIM) – The Mozambican anti-corruption NGO, the centre for public integrity (CIP), claims that the impact of last week’s demonstrations against the allegedly fraudulent results of the 9 October general elections is around 24.5 billion meticais (383.3 million dollars at the current exchange rate).

According to an analysis carried out by the organization, this amount represents approximately two percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) projected for 2024.

“This figure significantly exceeds the estimates released by the Confederation of Economic Associations of Mozambique (CTA), which calculated losses of 10 billion Meticais for the same period. The difference of around 14.5 billion Meticais suggests a discrepancy of 156.4 per cent between the two approaches, indicating that the methodologies used by the CTA may be more restricted, possibly focusing only on certain sectors or a limited set of companies”, reads the document.

CIP claims that its methodology for the analysis covers multiple sectors, highlighting a more holistic picture of losses.

In the document, CIP denies that the Ressano Garcia border post, on the frontier between Mozambique and South Africa, which was closed during the demonstrations, produces 1.5 billion Meticais a day, as the Mozambican Tax Authority claimed recently.

“This figure generates an apparent discrepancy when compared with the annual tax revenue projected in the Economic and Social Plan and State Budget (PESOE) for 2024, which is 348.3 billion Meticais, or a daily average of 950 million Meticais”, says the note.

Considering the discrepancy, CIP calls on the government and the CTA to adopt a more grounded and transparent approach to analyzing and disseminating economic data.

“They must use a methodology that is clear and publicly accessible, specifying the assumptions and variables used for the loss calculations and an alignment with official data released by the National Statistics Institute (INE), the Bank of Mozambique and the PESOE”, it says.

According to the document, the Administrative Tribunal must conduct an independent audit of the economic and fiscal losses in order to ensure that the data accurately reflects the country’s economic and fiscal reality.

“It is fundamental to consider that factors such as the allegations of electoral fraud and the political instability, involving the ruling Frelimo party and the electoral bodies (STAE and CNE), can significantly affect the Mozambican economy”.

“Clarity and transparency in the communication of data, as well as the neutrality of the institutions involved, are indispensable to avoid the manipulation of information in favor of specific interests and to promote more robust and reliable economic and fiscal management in Mozambique”, the document says.
(AIM)
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