The European Union has agreed to provide Mozambique with US$217 million in direct budgetary support under an agreement signed on Sunday in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa. The agreement was formalised by Mozambican Foreign Minister Oldemiro Baloi and the European Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development, Neven Mimica after an audience granted to the European official by President Filipe Nyusi, who was attending the African Union Heads of State and Government Summit.

Speaking immediately after the signing, Baloi said the main areas of cooperation between Mozambique and the EU are support for the state budget, rural development and infrastructures.

The meeting between Nyusi and Mimica, he added, also discussed “other strategic matters”.

Baloi said the EU “is a major partner and the audience was thus an important opportunity for the Commissioner to hear the opinions of the Mozambican President.”

Mimica said the meeting with Nyusi allowed an assessment of political and economic cooperation between the EU and Mozambique.

“We discussed the disbursement of EU support for Mozambique, and signed with the Foreign Minister an agreement worth 200 million euros in direct budget support,” said Mimima.

Source: StarAfrica