State still owes private sector companies 29 billion meticais – CTA

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State still owes private sector companies 29 billion meticais – CTA

11:38 CAT | 26 Oct 2017

In a further attempt to pressure the Mozambican government into paying the debts that the state has accumulated over the last few years, the Confederation of Economic Associations of Mozambique (CTA) called a press conference on Tuesday to publicly reiterate its concerns.

In concrete terms, the state owes the business sector in Mozambique 29 billion meticais (about US$474 million), adversely affecting the functioning of these companies. The amount in question represents debts for goods and services supplied to the state since 2014.

Eduardo Sengo, Executive Director and CTA spokesman, told reporters on Tuesday that the lack of payment was aggravating the difficulties of running businesses at a time when they were already operating under difficult economic conditions.

Also Read: Mozambique: Companies owe over a billion meticais to Social Security

“It is an amount that worries us, because we have bills, expenses, and investments to make. The strange thing is that the state itself comes to collect taxes knowing that they already have the money” Sengo said.

According to Sengo, about 2,000 companies in Mozambique may be facing closure because they are paralysed by lack of funds currently in the hands of the state.

Sengo recalled that last year the government had promised to try to reduce its debt, but the word of the Minister Adriano Maleiane had turned out to be just a promise and a good intention.

“The Minister of Economy and Finance promised that payments would start this year, paying 17 percent of the value this year, 50 percent next and the rest after that,” Sengo remembered.

He reiterated the call for the promise to be put into practise, because companies would otherwise be at risk of closing down.

Aslo Read: More on companies protesting at tax inspections – AIM report

Source: Canalmoz