Mozambique to expand trade facilitation agreements with neighbouring countries

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Mozambique to expand trade facilitation agreements with neighbouring countries

2:03 CAT | 02 Dec 2024

Photo: Ministério da Indústria e Comércio - Centro de Informação de Negócios

Mozambique intends to expand trade facilitation agreements with neighbouring countries, by simplifying border procedures, thereby boosting the import and export of goods.

The intention was expressed on Friday by the Minister of Industry and Commerce, Silvino Moreno, during the second annual session of the Trade Facilitation Commission, a body that brings together various stakeholders in the sector.

The initiative follows the agreement with the Republic of Malawi, which is already in the implementation phase and establishes a list of products that can be traded with reduced bureaucracy, thus promoting greater fluidity in cross-border operations.

“One of the government’s functions in foreign trade relations is to simplify procedures so that the exchange of goods and services is carried out more easily. We received information on the current status of both the agreement with Malawi (…) and the one-stop projects,” Minister Moreno said.

This agreement has the particularity of focusing on small and medium-sized foreign trade operators, with the aim of creating favourable conditions for transactions.

According to the minister, the expansion of this type of agreement to other countries will further strengthen micro, small and medium-sized companies, which make up the majority of the Mozambican business community. “We want to extend this initiative to other countries in the region, such as Zimbabwe and Zambia,” the minister commented.

Minister Moreno described the initial impact of the agreement with Malawi as encouraging, but stressed the need to increase trade volumes in the near future.

“Around 98% of companies in the country are micro, small and medium-sized, and many of the companies which carry out foreign trade operations also belong to this group. It is precisely to these companies that we want to direct the benefits of this simplified regime,” Silvino Moreno explained.

The minister added that these initiatives have the potential to encourage the formalization of companies and reduce the incidence of informal trade at the borders and, consequently, improve the collection of tax revenues and strengthen the business sector.

Source: Notícias