Mozambique: Hotels, residences and nearly 250 vehicles seized in first half of the year

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Mozambique: Hotels, residences and nearly 250 vehicles seized in first half of the year

4:40 CAT | 12 Nov 2025

Photo: O País

The Asset Management Office in Mozambique took possession in the first half of this year of 24 properties, including hotels and residences, as well as nearly 250 vehicles, the Government announced yesterday.

The information was provided by the spokesperson for this Tuesday’s Council of Ministers session, Salim Valá, who is also Minister of Planning and Development. He explained that the meeting reviewed the activity report on asset management for the first half of 2025.

“During this period, the office received 24 properties, including hotels, residences, warehouses, and 248 vehicles. In terms of rental income from seized assets, nearly 54 million meticais [728,000 euros] was collected,” he added.

The Asset Management Office had already taken possession in 2024 of two hotels, dozens of properties and vehicles, and two mosques, among other assets, according to earlier government information.

The data appear in the activity report of that office for last year, which was reviewed by the Council of Ministers in its weekly meeting in August, explained the session’s spokesperson, Inocêncio Impissa. He added that in 2024 three auctions were held for some assets, while others reverted to state use.

“In this context, the Asset Management Office currently holds, seized in 2024 in the cities of Nampula, Nacala and Maputo, two hotels, 17 properties and warehouses, 21 offices and shops, two mosques, a school, a clinic, and a restaurant,” Impissa noted at the end of the August Council of Ministers meeting.

Also received were 28 vehicles, five trucks, and 17 tractors. Additionally, 18 vehicle sales parks were seized last year, “with just over 600 vehicles”, as well as assets belonging to a farm, “including various properties” and machinery.

By October last year, the Mozambican Asset Management Office was managing 2,271 assets, valued at 2.401 billion meticais (32.3 million euros), as part of efforts to combat criminal activities.

According to data from the office, the list of these assets, mostly seized since 2022, included 80 properties, of which 73.58% resulted from tax fraud and tax crimes, and 12.86% from drug trafficking.

In 2024, the Ministry of Finance took over management of assets and goods seized or recovered in favour of the State as part of illicit or criminal activities, following a revision of the duties and powers of that body.

The measure is contained in Presidential Decree 02/2024 of 4 March, recognising the “need to revise the duties and powers” of that ministry. Specifically, among the powers now in force, the ministry assumes “the administration of assets and goods seized or recovered in favour of the State, within the framework of national processes or acts arising from international legal and judicial cooperation”.

Regarding the management of seized assets, the decree further states that the Ministry of Finance must “preserve, protect and manage the assets and goods seized under the care of the State diligently and responsibly”, as well as “determine the disposal, capitalisation, sale and allocation to public service or destruction of recovered goods”.

Since 2022, Mozambique has had a Central Asset Recovery Office (GCRA) within the Attorney General’s Office (PGR), responsible for investigation, tracing, seizure, and recovery of assets.

In its first year of activity, the GCRA announced it had recovered over one billion meticais (13.4 million euros) of illicit origin, including 30 properties and 12 vehicles.

Source: Lusa