Covid-19: Mozambique “well on track” to cover budget deficit in the face of the pandemic – President | Watch

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Covid-19: Mozambique “well on track” to cover budget deficit in the face of the pandemic – President | Watch

1:57 CAT | 01 Jun 2020

Photo: Presidency of the Republic of Mozambique

The President of the Republic, Filipe Nyusi, said on Thursday that Mozambique was “well on track” to mobilise the US$700 million needed to cover the budget deficit in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“The Government is well on track,” Filipe Nyusi is quoted as saying in a communique from the Presidency of the Republic distributed to the press on Friday.

The Mozambican president was speaking via video in a High-level Meeting convened by the Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, the Prime Minister of Jamaica, Andew Holness, and the Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN), António Guterres, bringing together several heads of state to debate “Financing for Development in the Covid-19 Era and Beyond”.

Despite the challenges that the period presents, the Mozambican government remains focused on the goals it has defined in the medium and long term, highlighting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) defined by the UN, the president said.

“Economic performance is critical for this program and for the SDGs. We are strongly committed to mitigating the impact of the coronavirus on the private sector, to ensure that it continues to float and is once again on track once the country returns to normal after the pandemic,” he said.

The US$700 million support was requested from partners by the government on March 23 to cover the fiscal shortfall in the 2020 State Budget caused by the pandemic, as well as to finance the fight against the disease and provide support for the poorest .

“The contribution of development partners, which joins the efforts of Mozambicans committed to increasing production and productivity, is critical for macro stability”, the Mozambican head of state stressed.

Of this total, the country has already received US$309 million (€278 million) from the International Monetary Fund and, according to the executive, several other partners have already expressed their intention to support the country, with the emphasis on the World Bank, African Bank of Development and the European Union.

Nyusi called on the community of development partners to work and support the country at this particularly crucial time, given that no country can sustain this virus alone.

Stakeholders argued for the need for greater cooperation between countries and organisations and called for international solidarity, particularly in relation to developing countries and small island states.

The leaders also addressed the issue of climate change and security, and outlined strategies for the rapid economic recovery of countries in the post-Covid-19 period.

The question of making the debt of developing countries sustainable was also a matter of debate, after debt service was cancelled or frozen for two or more years, in addition to the increase in humanitarian assistance.

The president of the 74th Session of the UN General Assembly, Tijjani Muhammade-Bande, also participated in the panel, along with European Commission President Ursula Von Der Leyen, the President of South Africa and the African Union, Cyril Ramaphosa, and the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Boris Johnson, among others.

The event also included the participation of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron, Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Norway, Erna Solberg, President of the World Bank, David Malpass, and the executive director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Kristalina Georgieva.

Last week, the Prime Minister of Canada spoke to President Nyusi on the phone and stressed the importance of global leadership in the fight against the pandemic and towards a more just and inclusive world for everyone.