By Richard Johnstone | 8 December 2014

The World Bank has awarded $110m to Mozambique to support government efforts to improve public financial management in the country and tackle poverty.

The Poverty Reduction Support Credit funding will boost the government’s own budget and its poverty reduction plan, which is intended to ensure that economic growth is matched by falls in poverty. This is the tenth PRSC payment made to the country.

Growth in Mozambique has averaged 7.4% a year over the past two decades, but this has not been accompanied by poverty reduction on the same scale.

Among the planned reforms are improvements to the quality of government systems for managing investment in capital projects, as well simplifying business licensing and registration.

This project will also support the expansion of existing social protection programs for the poorest and most vulnerable.

Mark Lundell, the bank’s country director for Mozambique, Madagascar, Mauritius, and Seychelles, said programmes funded by the award would address ‘the weakened relationship between growth and poverty reduction’.

He added: ‘This operation represents our commitment to the country’s development priorities and its poverty reduction agenda. The successive PRSC series has facilitated improvements in public sector capacity, greater efficiencies of public finance management, and improvements in the country’s business environment.’