Mozambique: Business leaders call for sustainable and transparent taxation

The Mozambican Chamber of Commerce (CCM) and the Confederation of Economic Associations (CTA) this Wednesday called for a sustainable and transparent national taxation system, emphasising that investment attraction and economic growth depend on sound fiscal policies. “We must have sustainable taxation; that is what we want. The Chamber of Commerce is in favour of taxation, but sustainable taxation,” said CCM Vice-President Dixon Chongo during the opening of a seminar in Maputo.

According to Chongo, despite the new fiscal package approved and published on 29 December, which came into effect in January, the impact of the tax burden in Mozambique still falls short of what the private sector desires and of what domestic companies need to be able to grow. “The truth is that the new fiscal package approved last year is very well regulated, covering all Mozambican companies and the private sector in general, and we, as the Chamber of Commerce, want to be that partner which presents proposals so that the regulations of the approved fiscal package can be adjusted or aligned as closely as possible with the wishes and expectations of Mozambican companies,” he explained. Chongo added that to ensure a sustainable tax system, the government must guarantee transparency in the process, stressing that the national business sector, as taxpayer, wants to find favourable models for corporate taxation, requiring transparency from the state.

“We want to see our roads in good condition, we want our children in good schools with proper desks, we want security, our police properly equipped, we want the military defending our country also to have proper conditions, and these conditions are guaranteed by the taxes that the private sector pays to the state. At the seminar, Pedro Saulosse, Vice-President for Fiscal, Customs and International Trade Policy at the CTA, noted that taxation serves as a pillar for developing economic policies, but that it can be fragile. “The attraction of investment and sustainable economic growth in Mozambique, in this case, largely depends on what fiscal policies the government can implement.

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In Mozambique, companies face significant challenges related to the tax burden, complexity of tax procedures, compliance costs, and unpredictability of the tax system, all factors that can directly influence the business environment,” Salousse explained. According to Saulosse, transparency is also fundamental in this process because “taxes are the guarantee of the functioning of any state,” and digital transformation, a programme launched by the government this month, is also a path in this area. “I hope that this digital transformation reaches the taxation sector,” he said, adding that digitalisation will help ensure taxation is carried out more efficiently and transparently, and that citizens pay what they owe: “And not pay based on speculation or the interpretation of a specific official.” The ongoing tax reform in Mozambique involves, among other measures, adjustments to the customs tariff, the VAT code, and the Corporate Income Tax (IRPC) regulations, steps that the Tax Authority previously acknowledged could significantly contribute to the projected increase of 15 billion meticais (€200 million) in tax revenue in 2026.

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