Good afternoon. The spectre of government control over NGOs looms once again. The government’s semi-official newspaper, Notícias, has set the tone, with the latest trigger being a presidential meeting held a few weeks ago in Pemba, the capital of the war-torn province of Cabo Delgado.
While alarm bells are ringing, the situation remains clouded by confusion. At the Pemba meeting, concerns were raised about the circulation of an unaccounted $2bn - amid excessive administrative costs, Maputo’s dominance in fund allocation, and the government’s weak role in setting priorities, designing programs, and overseeing NGO activities.
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Even implementing agencies acknowledge the need for better coordination and information-sharing, with the government playing a key role to ensure that the largest share of funding reaches the intended beneficiaries. However, there is strong resistance to the idea of government control over programs and finances. National NGOs fear that Cabo Delgado could serve as a Trojan horse for broader restrictions across the country—something previous attempts, common across Africa, have failed to achieve.
Not long ago, the government was forced to abandon its push for tighter control over NGOs through a proposed law on non-profit associations. Meanwhile, members of the government’s “task force” on Mozambique’s Financial Action Task Force (FATF) “grey list” dossier sought to frame NGOs as potential conduits for terrorist financing, particularly in Cabo Delgado. That claim, lacking evidence, was ultimately dismissed. Now, NGOs and Mozambique’s Financial Information Office (GIFIM) are collaborating to build a database mapping all organizations operating in the country in an effort to remove Mozambique from the FATF grey list, where it has remained since October 2022.
