Maputo — The Mozambican government launched in Maputo on Thursday a Technical Assistance Project to help improve efficiency and transparency in the financial sector.

The project is budgeted at 28 million US dollars, of which the Mozambican government is to contribute two million, while the remainder is a loan from the African Development Bank (ADB).

Deputy Finance Minister Pedro Couto, who chaired the ceremony, said that with this initiative the government intends to improve the efficiency of the financial sector by improving social security and pensions, and strengthening the insurance laws, among other aspects.

"We hope, above all, that the project will contribute to a more efficient and more transparent service, a more stable financial system, exempt from eventual ruptures and bankruptcies, among other problems", he said.

He admitted that the technical assistance project, that will centre its activities mainly in human and institutional empowerment, will not solve all the problems of the country's financial sector.

For his part, ADB representative, Taiwo Adenidji, explained that another important aim of the project is to help improve the legal environment for financial transactions, and assist in implementing the legislation against money laundering.

Other components of the initiative include improving financial accountability, and the management of public debt.

Speaking of the Social Security system, Adenidji pointed to the need to strengthen the capacity of the scandal-ridden National Social Security Institute (INSS), widening its coverage, and reforming its organization and management system.

Couto told reporters that the project will be implemented over the next five years. "We expect to achieve an efficient financial system on a broader base", he said. "It will cover the regions that are currently not covered, and the poorer strata of society, who are generally excluded from the commercial banking system".