Mozambique’s economy is expected to grow at between 4.0% and 4.7% in 2019, the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) resident representative in Mozambique said recently in Maputo.
Ari Asen, speaking on the sidelines of a lecture promoted by the School of Higher Studies and Business at the Polytechnic University under the theme, “The international economic environment and potential impacts on the emerging and Mozambican economies,” argued that the performance of the Mozambican economy in 2019 will partly depend on the final investment decision of the companies operating in the gas sector in the Rovuma basin in the province of Cabo Delgado.
The final investment decision, namely the one related to the Area 1 block, is a sign, as Aisen argued, of the great potential that Mozambique has and which could catapult the growth of the economy to 4.7%.
The resident representative, quoted by online newspaper “Carta”, also said that in addition to this factor, the payment to suppliers and cautious easing of monetary policy could favour the increase of credit, as well as the maintenance of peace, which is a central factor in the country’s economic growth process.
“We also recommend fiscal discipline to avoid situations of worsening, depreciation and inflation of the currency,” said Aisen, who added that the inflation rate is stable, at 6.5% in 2018 and a forecast of 5.5% for 2019.
