Mozambique: Nyusi inaugurates INSS delegation in Angónia – Watch

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Mozambique: Nyusi inaugurates INSS delegation in Angónia – Watch

6:47 CAT | 04 Aug 2021

Photo: TVM

Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi on Monday inaugurated a delegation of the National Social Security Institute (INSS) in Ulongue, capital of Angonia district, in the western province of Tete.

Occupying an area of 362 square metres, the delegation cost the equivalent of 409,000 US dollars.

At the inauguration ceremony, Nyusi said the services provided by the delegation will mean that the companies and pensioners in Angonia registered with the INSS will no longer have to travel to the INSS provincial delegation in Tete city to deal with social security matters. The delegation will also cater for INSS beneficiaries in the neighbouring districts of Tsangano and Macanga.

Currently the 11 INSS provincial delegations and the 69 district services are catering to over two million INSS beneficiaries. “These figures show that our INSS has been growing considerably in terms of its infrastructures and the number of people assisted”, said Nyusi.

He urged companies that are in debt to the social security system to regularise their situation. This has been made easy for them, since the government has waived the fines and interest on arrears which they should normally pay. This government generosity is justified as a means of facilitating business activity during the economic recession caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

For many years, the Mozambican trade unions have complained that a large number of companies deduct social security contributions from their workers’ wages, but then do not channel the money to the INSS. This theft from the workers makes them ineligible for the INSS benefits they believe they have paid for.

First bank in Zumbo
Nyusi also inaugurated the first bank in the Tete district of Zumbo. This is the most westerly district in the country, bordering on Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The bank in question is a branch of MozaBanco, set up in Zumbo under the presidential initiative “One district, one bank”.

Speaking after inaugurating the bank, Nyusi said that 129 of the country’s 164 districts now have banks. This compares with just 85 in 2015, when Nyusi began his first term of office. The number of districts with banks had increased from 55 per cent in 2015 to 84 per cent now.

Nyusi said he was convinced that, with the new MozaBanco branch, residents not only of Zumbo, but also of the neighbouring districts of Magoe and Maravia, would be able to undertake their financial transactions with greater security.

He urged local businesses and anyone who can set up financially viable projects to take advantage of the credit facilities available from the new branch.

“We intend to promote financial inclusion from Zumbo to the Indian Ocean and from the Rovuma to the Maputo”, declared the president – mentioning the places that mark the western, eastern, northern and southern boundaries of the country.

He urged the MozaBanco managers to ensure effective attendance to clients, and reduced waiting times, and to provide diversified and competitive financial services. He called for simplification of the rules and conditions required for opening bank accounts.

By next year, said Nyusi, more than half the Mozambican population will have access to a point providing financial services within five kilometres of their home or workplace.