Mozambique and China signed a supplementary framework agreement on October 26, 2026, to reschedule part of Mozambique’s public debt repayments. Signed in Maputo, the arrangement is intended to ease near-term payment pressures and make the government’s budget planning more predictable.
Mozambican Finance Minister Carla Loveira and Chinese Ambassador Zheng Xuan signed the document following talks between Presidents Daniel Chapo and Xi Jinping. The two sides plan to put the framework into effect through additional instruments with the Export-Import Bank of China (Exim Bank), which will set out the repayment arrangements. Neither the value of the instalments affected nor a revised timetable has been released.
The importance of the negotiations becomes clearer when viewed against the country’s external debt. Mozambique owed China around $1.284 billion at the end of June 2026, equivalent to 14.5% of its external debt, according to finance ministry data reported by Portuguese news agency Lusa. China was therefore Mozambique’s largest bilateral creditor.
The finance ministry expects the revised repayment profile to relieve immediate budget pressure while helping preserve resources for infrastructure and essential public services. The agreement forms part of Mozambique’s 2025–2029 medium-term public debt management strategy, which seeks to align payments more closely with the country’s financing capacity.
Chinese lending has helped finance infrastructure such as the Maputo–Katembe bridge, built by China Road and Bridge Corporation with financing from Exim Bank. Debt discussions were also part of President Chapo’s visit to China earlier in 2026, preceding the October framework agreement.