Business Corruption

According to Global Integrity 2007, in practice, customs and excise laws in Mozambique are not always enforced uniformly or without discrimination, and some groups are more likely to evade customs and excise laws due to their connections.

Moreover, the Mozambican customs system lacks transparency and is not always efficient, as illustrated in the World Economic Forum Global Enabling Trade Report 2010 where business surveyed executives rate the transparency of the border administration in relation to irregular payments in export and import and the efficiency of customs administration as relatively low, constituting a competitiveness disadvantage for the country.

Political Corruption

A 2007 report on corruption and reform in the customs in Mozambique by the Centre for Public Integrity (Centro de Integridade Pública Mozambique, CIP) states that the reform of the customs administration initialised in 1996 has reduced the magnitude of corruption in the sector, even though the level of corruption remains high. According to the report, the reform has had some success in changing the custom staff's perception of involvement in corruption, an act that is now considered risky.

On the other hand, Transparency International's National Integrity Systems 2007 portrays Mozambique's customs administration as a corruption-prone area. Citing data from the National Civil Service Authority, the report states that the customs is the most corruption-prone part of the state apparatus, despite being the only sector of the civil service to have a code of conduct. In 2006, over 190 disciplinary proceedings were initiated against customs officials, compared to well over 40 in the police force and 40 in the judiciary. Among the offences leading to the proceedings were illicit user charges and falsification of documents. Another source, Global Integrity 2007, also states that the customs administration is one of the public sectors that are plagued by corruption.

Frequency

The World Bank & IFC: Doing Business 2011:
- Exporting a standardised shipment of goods requires a company to obtain and fill out 7 documents, taking an average of 23 days at a cost of USD 1,100 per container.

- Importing a standardised shipment of goods requires a company to acquire and fill out 10 documents, taking an average of 30 days at a cost of USD 1,475 per container.

World Economic Forum: The Global Enabling Trade Report 2010:
- Business executives give the transparency of border administration (pervasiveness of undocumented extra payments or bribes connected with imports and exports) in Mozambique a score of 3.2 on a 7-point scale (1 'non-transparent' and 7 'transparent').

- Business executives give the efficiency of customs administration (burden of customs procedures) in Mozambique a score of 3.1 on a 7-point scale (1 'extremely inefficient' and 7 'extremely efficient').

The World Bank & IFC: Enterprise Surveys 2007:
- 10% of companies surveyed expect to give gifts to get an import licence.