Bissau, June 12, 2025 (Lusa) - The president of Guinea-Bissau, Umaro Sissoco Embaló, on Thursday considered normal the restriction of travel allowances for civil servants to curb public spending, under guidelines from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
In a statement, Finance Minister Ilido Vieira Té said that, from now on, the government will suspend travel allowances for civil servants travelling abroad to preserve budgetary resources.
Speaking after the weekly cabinet meeting, Umaro Sissoco Embaló said that the measure was not new and that all governments in the country had “practically adopted it.”
“I prefer pragmatic measures. I even initiated this one, and I have always said that members of the government should participate if they deem it appropriate,” he noted.
The Guinean president recalled that the country must meet certain requirements under the agreement with the International Monetary Fund, and the financial institution even questioned his travels.
“The IMF once questioned my travels, but we allowed them to check. They ended up finding that the president, after all, places no burden on Guinea-Bissau’s public treasury. They also know who supports us. We have a small group of friends, and they are good ones,” he said.
The head of state said that the restrictions allow any dignitary from the country to travel at the expense of the state and that, in his case, he participates “in all international forums” that he considers important, often, he assured, with the support of friendly heads of state.
“We travel only for duty, but when the president travels, it is easy for him to pick up the phone and ask his counterparts for help,” he said.
In the circular, the finance minister argued that it was imperative to comply with the country’s obligations under a memorandum of the eighth review of the Extended Credit Facility Programme with the IMF, which recognises the “limited liquidity” in the Guinean Treasury.
The measure targets civil servants, the public business sector, local and indirect administration.
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