China will donate the equivalent of US$13.8 million and cancel US$7 million of Mozambique’s debt under agreements signed on Tuesday in Maputo.
The donation results from the Economic and Technical Cooperation Agreement signed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Mozambique, Verónica Macamo, and by the Chinese ambassador in Maputo, Wang Hejun.
Macamo and Wang also signed the Mozambican Partial Debt Relief Agreement and a certificate of delivery of food products for humanitarian assistance by Beijing.
“This gesture is yet another symbol of our solidarity and cooperation forged since the times of the national liberation struggle, in which China gave its support to the cause of self-determination of the Mozambican people,” said Macamo.
Referring specifically to the Partial Debt Forgiveness Agreement, Macamo noted that the agreement will contribute to the relief of public accounts and to the availability of resources for social and economic development projects in the country.
“China has stood by Mozambique’s side, contributing to the efforts towards the sustainable development of our country,” she emphasised.
For his part, the Chinese ambassador noted that the two countries have intensified cooperation in various fields, consolidating historic ties.
“China will continue to expand the forms and fields of cooperation with Mozambique and to promote, according to Mozambique’s needs, more pragmatic and mutually beneficial projects,” he said.
In March 2021, the Minister of Economy and Finance of Mozambique, Adriano Maleiane, said in parliament that the country owed US$1.8 billion to China, equivalent to 16 per cent of the total value of public debt.
Around US$1.6 billion was owed to the Chinese Exim Bank for the construction of roads and bridges, including the Maputo ring road, the suspension bridge over Maputo Bay and the roads to the south, said Maleiane.
