Mozambique 16 Sept: New promises of transparency with IMF
Good afternoon. President Filipe Nyusi is today in Houston, Texas where he will meet with energy industry executives and give a speech at former President George H W Bush’s old home. Nyusi’s visit to Washington, DC did not include a meeting with the current President of the US, but he was received at the White House by Secretary of State John Kerry who wanted to discuss the ongoing conflict, and the question of transparency in Mozambique.
SEE: Nyusi kicks off US visit with Secretary of State John Kerry
Transparency was also on the agenda when Nyusi went to see IMF managing director Christine Lagarde - perhaps the single most important engagement of the trip. The presidency has not made a statement about the meeting, but according to the IMF, there seems to have been progress.
SEE: Mozambique will implement independent international audit, Nyusi tells IMF
Nyusi’s openness to an international independent audit will not be welcomed in some quarters. In the words of MediaFAX today, Nyusi’s posture has “irritated certain sections allied to the previous administration, which mobilised part of its arsenal on social networks to position themselves against [it].”
Today, one of the victims of that campaign was Zitamar News, which - not for the first time - was wrongly credited with writing a hyperbolic article stirring up intrigue within Frelimo. The article, circulated on WhatsApp, begins: “O cada vez mais débil presidente da República de Moçambique, Filipe Nyusi…” We are sure our readers can tell a real Zitamar article from the fakes.
The new central bank governor and former IMF economist, Rogério Zandamela, is accompanying the president on his visit to the US - missing his first monetary policy committee decision, which was scheduled for today. The committee was cancelled - but, somewhat incredibly, no announcement was made until after the meeting was supposed to be well underway.
Last year, the IMF sent a technical team of advisers specifically to help the central bank improve its communications. Apparently nothing has been learned. Clear communication and predictability is half the battle for effective monetary policy, and the Bank of Mozambique is failing badly at both. The Bank’s latest monetary policy decision, two months ago, was also postponed at the last minute - and ended with the governor hiking rates by a shocking 300 basis points. The shambolic communication is damaging the institution’s credibility and is an issue that the new governor needs to prioritise.
SEE: New Bank of Mozambique governor postpones first monetary policy decision
SEE: Bank of Mozambique says no new FX cash withdrawal limits
South Africa’s Sasol released its annual financial results this week, showing a fall in profits from its Mozambique operation, but a profit nonetheless - which is more than can be said of Sasol’s other overseas exploration and production operations. The company said it is pleased with the encouraging results from drilling in its new PSA area.
SEE: Sasol reports ‘encouraging’ results from latest Mozambique drilling
Meanwhile, Mozambique’s use of renewable energy got a boost with the announcement that 28 telecoms towers will use combined diesel-and-solar generation sets to keep them running in remote areas of the country.
SEE: Swedish off-grid power solution for Mozambique telecoms
On Wednesday, the European Parliament gave its approval for a ‘trade and development deal’ allowing Mozambique and five of its SADC neighbours greater access to the European Union’s single market.
SEE: EU-SADC free trade deal wins European parliament approval
Co-operation with Zimbabwe has seen Mozambique help its landlocked neighbour import 100,000 tonnes of grain since February this year, to deal with the effects of the drought.
SEE: Zimbabwe imports 100,000 tonnes of emergency grain via Mozambique railways
And finally, peace talks between the government and Renamo restarted this week - but made little to no progress. We hope for better next week.
SEE: Mozambique peace talks to restart amid climate of hostility
Have a great weekend.