Maputo — Mozambique must fill in "critical information gaps" over $2bn of secret government loans, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday, in a scandal that has damaged the nation’s economy. At the end of a 10-day mission to Mozambique, IMF officials expressed dissatisfaction with continuing uncertainty about debts built up by state-owned companies from loans by foreign banks including Credit Suisse. A recent audit by New York-based forensic accountants Kroll concluded that $500m of the $2bn was still unaccounted for. "Critical information gaps remain unaddressed regarding the use of loans proceeds," the IMF said. "The team urged the government to take steps to fill the information gaps and to enhance its action plan to strengthen transparency." The government secretly borrowed $2bn between 2012 and 2014 to fund a coastal protection project. In December a commission of inquiry found that the government had broken the law when it failed to seek parliamentary clearance...
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