World Bank says Mozambique’s public sector is not oversized, despite employing around 357,000 workers, but has been strained by a sharp rise in wages following the 2022 reform.
“The strong increase in the wage bill was driven by salary increases, not by workforce expansion,” the World Bank states in its Mozambique Economic Update report titled “From Fragility to Stability – Why Fiscal Reforms Cannot Wait.”
According to the report, the public wage bill rose from less than 5% of Gross Domestic Product in 2000 to 15% in 2023.
“Base salaries increased rapidly after the 2022 payroll reform,” the report notes, estimating that spending grew by 40% between 2021 and 2022, when the new Single Salary Table (TSU) was introduced.
Read more about this topic: Mozambique has “unsustainable debt,” says World Bank
Part of the increase reflects the integration of allowances into base salaries. However, the size of the public workforce has not grown significantly in recent years. Mozambique had about 357,000 public employees in 2023, representing an average annual growth of 2.9% over the past six years.
“The public sector is not oversized compared to regional and income peers,” the report concludes.
In 2022, public employment accounted for 3.9% of the working-age population (15–64), compared to an average of 8.3% among Sub-Saharan African countries with available data.
Mozambican President Daniel Chapo pledged in July 2025 to correct “inconsistencies” in the TSU, following complaints from public workers in sectors such as education and health.
Read more about this topic: Mozambique to restructure transport institute after “signs of corruption”
Workers have raised concerns about delays in overtime payments and called for better classification within the salary framework. The TSU has faced strong criticism over the past three years, leading to strikes by teachers, doctors, and judges.
Approved in 2022 to reduce disparities and control the state wage bill, the reform increased salaries by about 36%, from 11.6 billion meticais per month to 15.8 billion meticais, according to government data. However, workers continue to report inequalities and pay cuts.
The reform cost around 28.5 billion meticais (about €410 million), “more than expected,” according to an assessment by the International Monetary Fund published in early 2024.
Mozambique’s Ministry of Economy and Finance said the reform aims to standardize job categories, reduce inconsistencies, and improve the professionalism of public servants to ensure better delivery of public services.
