Maputo, July 15, 2025 (Lusa) - External transfers to Mozambique fell by almost half in 2024 compared to the previous year, to the equivalent of almost €520 million, dropping to the second main source of financing for the Mozambican public accounts deficit.
According to data analysed on Tuesday by Lusa from a recently approved annual report by the Bank of Mozambique, in the financing of the state budget, the overall deficit before transfers worsened by 11.2% in 2024, compared to the previous year, to 148.7 billion meticais (€1.988 billion).
It adds that to cover this deficit, the Government "resorted to internal borrowing in the amount of 113.2 billion meticais [€1.514 billion] (more than double compared to 2023)’, through net issues of Treasury Bonds (OT) of 38.9 billion meticais (€520 million), Treasury Bills (BT) worth 46.2 billion meticais (€617 million) and financing from the central bank worth 28.1 billion meticais (€375.8 million).
"External financing amounted to 18.6 billion meticais [€249 million], an increase of 16% over the previous year, with the remainder covered by external grants amounting to 38.9 billion meticais [€520 million]," the report said.
As a result, external grants fell from the top position in Mozambique's public deficit financing in 2023, with 64 billion meticais (€856 million), to second place in 2025, also due to the strong growth in long-term (OT) and short-term (BT) domestic debt issuance, which rose to first place.
The Mozambican government signed 14 external grant agreements in 2024 for various projects worth US$785.89 million (€757.5 million at the exchange rate on the date), according to data reported in March by Lusa, based on a report from the Ministry of Finance.
Of these, nine relate to support from the World Bank, worth US$651 million (€627.5 million), and five from the African Development Bank (AfDB), worth US$134.89 million (€130 million).
In addition, two concessional credit agreements were signed in 2024 with the Arab Bank for Development in Africa, worth US$20 million (€19.2 million) to finance the ‘One region, one hospital’ initiative, and with an Italian state bank for US$37.45 million (€36 million) for an agri-food project in Manica.
PVJ/AYLS // AYLS
Lusa
