By Noémia Mendes, António Cumbane and Neusa Chiunguete
Maputo (MOZTIMES) – The Confederation of Mozambican Business Associations (CTA) estimates that the paralysis of economic activities resulting from the ten days of strikes and demonstrations throughout the country has caused losses of USD 45.5 million arising from destruction and break-ins, putting more than 1,200 jobs at risk.
According to the CTA, 151 business units throughout the country have been directly affected.
The chairperson of the CTA, Agostinho Vuma, told journalists in Maputo on Tuesday that the demonstrations have pushed the forecast GDP growth rate for the year down from 5.5% to 3.3%.
"The sectors of trade, restaurants, logistics and transport were most affected during the paralysis with a significant loss of 24.8 billion meticais, affecting the GDP by about 2.2 per cent", said Vuma.
According to the Centre for Public Integrity (CIP), the economic loss of 2% of the GDP makes the elections of 2024 the most expensive in Mozambican history, resulting from the wave of protests against the election results, on a scale never seen since the first elections held in 1994.
The CTA says the demonstrations affected 151 companies throughout the country. 80% of these are in Maputo city, where 11 companies closed temporarily to replace stocks, strengthen the establishment and rehabilitate the infrastructures.
For the road transport sector, the operators say that, during the demonstrations in Maputo, informal toll-gates appeared, which caused losses of 417 million meticais, said Vuma.
He added that the interruption of traffic along the Maputo Corridor led to a reduction in the normal flow of trucks to the Port of Maputo, from a daily average of 1,100 to 300.
In the financial sector, the stoppages caused a reduction in transactions on the exchange market of 75.3%, where the previous daily average of about 60 million dollars fell to 14 million dollars on 24 and 25 October.
The Executive Director of the CTA, Eduardo Sengo, said that during the demonstrations several banks operated with restrictions, with a negative impact on their annual targets.
As measures to mitigate the economic impact, the CTA is proposing to the Government that:
- VAT be removed from oils, soaps, sugar, chickens and eggs which are basic products mainly for the poor;
- A fiscal moratorium with a deferment of deadlines;
- Exemption from charges (fines, interest, fiscal execution fees) resulting from the delays in paying taxes;
- Simplification and flexibilization of audits after customs clearance at the main frontiers and ports
For the political analyst Gabriel Ngomane, "Probably Venancio Mondlane has understood that the weak point of the country or the way of putting pressure on the government so that it acts in accordance with his pretensions is to attack the economic profile, because he is speaking about concentrating on the frontiers. It is at the frontiers that trade takes place, and where there is major taxation on imports and exports, and so this could bring drastic consequences".
"We have already been informed that, on the days when the Ressano Garcia frontier was closed, there was a loss of about six million euros. That's a lot of Money for just three days for our economy", said Ngomane.
"We must have the courage to face the problem. And when there are losses of life and economic losses, we should above all look for dialogue, because we cannot live with this situation. The country is not in a good state" warned political analyst José Malaire. (NM/NC)
