The International Monetary Fund (IMF) yesterday (06) approved the second review of the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) for Mozambique, guaranteeing a disbursement of 60.6 million dollars, and revised GDP growth from 5 to 7%.

"In light of the mixed programmatic results, the authorities have taken substantial steps to resolutely address macroeconomic challenges and keep the program on track, notably with regard to reducing the wage bill and aligning the fiscal outlook with program objectives," says the IMF document quoted by Lusa.

In the note accompanying the announcement of the approval of the second revision of the program approved in May 2022, which brings the total amount already received by Mozambique to 212.09 million dollars, out of a total of 456 million dollars, the IMF says that it allowed two criteria to be overlooked: the primary budget balance at the end of last year and the accumulation of external debts by the public sector.

"The end-December 2022 performance criterion for the internal primary budget balance was not met due to slippages in the implementation of the wage bill reform and revenue shortfalls," reads the same document consulted by the source.

Furthermore, he adds, "the continuous performance criterion relating to the non-accumulation of public and publicly guaranteed external payment arrears was not met due to delays in debt servicing by a public company."

The source also says that "the performance of the program was generally favorable, although there were notable slippages in the budgetary area, but some important commitments in the program in the areas of budgetary management and anti-corruption were completed."

For this year, the IMF predicts an acceleration in GDP growth, from 4.2% in 2022 to 7% this year, anticipating that by the end of the year inflation will have fallen from 10.3% to 6.7%, the same as in 2021, but still almost double the previous two years.

The debt-to-GDP ratio is expected to continue its downward trajectory and reach 89.7% by the end of this year, an improvement on last year's 95.5% of GDP.