Mozambican govt has no knowledge of other hidden debts – Finmin

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Mozambican govt has no knowledge of other hidden debts – Finmin

4:17 CAT | 03 Nov 2016

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The Mozambican Minister of Finance said yesterday that he is not aware of any more ‘hidden debt’, but he would be grateful if any creditors with information would deliver it to the government to help it address the problem.

Adriano Maleiane said that the value of the Mozambican public debt agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is US$11.2 billion (EUR 10 billion), including the US$1.4 billion in state-guaranteed loans companies revealed in April and the previous US$850 million loan to the Mozambican Tuna Company (Ematum).

“These are the numbers that we have consolidated so far. Of course, there may be a creditor who has some information that we do not have and we would appreciate, if that is the case, it being forwarded to us,” Maleiane said in Maputo yesterday during a conference organised by the Financial Times.

Maleiane said that, as “a precautionary measure”, the Government had created a resource management unit to ensure there was no disparity between the from his Ministry and that of the creditors, although he is convinced that “the numbers that are there are good”.

The IMF representative in Maputo, Ari Aisen, said at the same event that he also had no reason to believe that there was more hidden debt, but warned that the question could only be answered in “final form” through an independent international audit.

“We need the audit to produce transparent information to the people of Mozambique, who deserve to know the answers to these important issues,” Aisen argued.

When asked what had happened to the more than two billion dollars of hidden loans, Maleine said the audit being prepared by IMF and the Attorney General of Mozambique would determine that.

“Many people ask this question. I am also a citizen and also have the right to know. But, so that we are not asking a question we do not know how to answer, we have the international audit.” Only at the end, he said would it be possible to “know what actually happened”, and whether the money remained among the assets of the beneficiary companies.

For Maleiane, it is “information that is of public interest”, and important to clarify the issue for the good of all, including both the current government and the previous one, which guaranteed loans to state companies between 2013 and 2014, allegedly in order to ensure maritime security and finance hydrocarbon exploration projects.

The minister also made reference to Credit Suisse, one of the entities that lent the money.

“From a rational point of view, I assume that a bank does not grant finance without at least some analysis,” he said.
Adriano Maleiane pointed out that the Government was working with the IMF and creditors towards restoring confidence after the Fund and other state budget partners discontinued funding as a result of the hidden debt scandal.

The Mozambique government officially acknowledged last week that it was unable to pay forthcoming instalments of state company debts, advocating payment restructuring and a new financial aid package from the IMF.

Source: Lusa