Africa-Press – Mozambique. The London School of Economics (LSE) believes that the lack of adequate infrastructures, excessive bureaucracy and problems related to good governance of public affairs are hindering rapid and inclusive economic growth in Mozambique.
According to LSE policy officer, Sheyla Valdivia, during the Mozambique Growth Diagnostic Report presented publicly, on Tuesday, in Maputo, “lack of infrastructures, especially roads, is one of the main obstacles jeopardizing the country’s development.”
According to the report, which was carried out in 2023 by the Harvard Growth Lab and LSE, with the support of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, about 80 per cent of the road network is unpaved and lacks proper maintenance, restricting access to markets and harming rural sectors, especially agriculture.
Valdivia explained that obstacles such as excessive bureaucracy contribute greatly to the deterioration of the business environment, hampering companies’ ability to grow.
The researcher also pointed to the “existence of weak coordination between public players, which makes it difficult to create a favorable business environment.”
“Overlapping responsibilities, ineffective policy implementation and the lack of an overall plan for commercial and industrial access to services undermine the private sector’s confidence in the government’s ability to facilitate economic growth”, she said.
As a recommendation for more inclusive growth, the study calls for digitalization of the economy, which will establish clear coordination structures between various government bodies.
Other recommendations include prioritizing road sectors, improving the legal framework for public-private partnerships in the road sector, reforming the Land Law and better coordinating and systematizing of government services.
On the occasion, the Economic Policy Manager at the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Angelo Natalidade, said that the sector had noted the recommendations and would work with them in government strategies such as the Economic Acceleration Package (PAE), and the government’s Five-Year Plan and the National Economic Development Strategy (ENDE).
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