Maputo, 10 Apr (AIM) – The Mozambican Ombudsman, Isaque Chande, called for greater dialogue between State bodies and companies to remove obstacles that hinder productive activity, such as bureaucracy, delays in issuing licenses and corruption.

According to the ombudsman, who spoke on Thursday, in Maputo, on the sidelines of the Business Breakfast promoted by the country’s Confederation of Business Associations (CTA), there are several complaints from companies related to difficulties in communicating with the public administration, including delays in paying State debts and undue charges.

“We have already received requests for intervention from companies because the State has had debts with us for more than two or three years. We have also spoken to institutions involved in collecting tax debts, situations that ended up being resolved,” said Chande.

“We also intervened to resolve delays in decision-making or issuing licenses. There were cases that dragged on for more than two years, but ended up being resolved after our intervention,” he said.

The Ombudsman highlighted that his institution has worked to boost “an efficient and transparent public administration, promoting greater dialogue between the State and citizens, including the business sector”.

“Our role is to contribute to a more effective, more efficient and less corrupt public administration. We don’t have two States, we have one State with different institutions. We have to find measures that make life easier for businesspeople”, he stated.

For his part, Onório Manuel, vice-president of the CTA, said that among the main constraints faced by the private sector are the difficulty in accessing foreign currency, the delay in refunding Value Added Tax (VAT) and excessive bureaucracy in public administration.

“The business sector in Mozambique has a significant amount of VAT that it has not been able to recover for many years. Even though it is not a direct cost, slow reimbursement ends up becoming a cost for companies”, he explained.

Manuel added that the lack of foreign currency also constitutes an obstacle to economic activity, as it prevents the import of raw materials and equipment necessary for production.

“As long as we don’t have currency to import intermediate goods and capital goods, we won’t be able to produce. We want the business environment to be like a highway, without speed bumps or potholes,” he declared.
(AIM)
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