In recent months, the lives of civil servants have been a real headache due to the constant delays in salary payments. In fact, since the introduction of the famous Single Salary Scale, civil servants have had no financial respite.

According to the Center for Public Integrity (CIP), the impacts of salary delays go beyond the financial damage to public professionals, causing disruption to the economy. But that's not all.

This damage is all the more serious in a situation where families' purchasing power is being eroded by high inflation (which rose from 6.74% in December 2021 to 10.29 in December 2022, reaching a peak of 12.10% in June 2022), says the NGO.

The CIP document says that this scenario increases, on the one hand, the levels of inefficiency in the functioning of public institutions, due to the high level of discontent and absences from work and, on the other hand, increases the level of credit defaults in the economy (non-performing loans), since the delay in salaries means a delay in the payment of monthly installments.

The NGO also points to the poor quality of public services as a consequence of these delays, coupled with the paralysis of some activities.

In this context, it's worth remembering that as of Monday, the doctors will be on strike to demand wage cuts.

The impact also extends to the banking sector, which could see civil servants default on their debts.

"This scenario could put civil servants at high risk of default, increasing the interest rate on their loans," reads the document published by the NGO.

Furthermore, the Financial Stability Report 2023 indicates that Mozambique continues to have a high level of non-performing loans, with a level of 9% by April 2023, well above the acceptable international average of 5%.

In the document, the NGO also criticizes the lack of fixed dates for the payment of salaries. "Fixed expenses, such as salaries, should have dates for payment. So far, unlike other countries, Mozambique does not have a fixed date for the payment of salaries to the different sectors, with only the 15th being indicated as the starting date," says CIP.

The CIP goes further and says that the state should assume the losses caused to employees by these delays.

It is essential that the law be more assertive and make room for compensation for damage caused to employees.

In this case, it is important to recognize the need for the government to bear the costs of wage arrears, starting with the definition of fixed dates for the payment of wages and the establishment of rules for monetary correction, fines and accountability for arrears