Mozambique: Party funding

Updated June 2006

Note: In February and June of 2007 the Assembly of the Republic passed five new electoral laws. The information on this page will be revised and updated as soon as possible. Significant here is that Law no 8/2007 26 February (governs the National Electoral Commission) replaces Law no 20/2002.

Private funding

Electoral financing is regulated by electoral law, which permits parties to finance campaigns through contributions from candidates and party or coalition funds, through contributions from national or foreign citizens, monies generated through campaign activities, contributions from friendly foreign or national parties or contributions from NGOs, whether local or foreign (Law 20/2002, 35.1.). Parties and coalitions may not receive funds from foreign governments and institutions or companies owned by foreign governments (Law 20/2002, 35.3.). Electoral participants are further prohibited from using the assets of the state, state structures or state owned companies, excluding public venues, which must be shared equally, and the public broadcasting facilities, where airtime is to be allocated by the CNE (Law 20/2002, 40.).

The law further lays out that within 60 days of the publication of the results of the election concerned all the parties, candidates and coalitions that participated in the election must give account of incomes received and expenses made to the National Electoral Commission (CNE); they must also return to the CNE all state allocations not expended or expended on items not approved of in terms of the law (Law 20/2002, 37, 38). The CNE then has 60 days to review the accounts and then must publish its findings in the most widely read newspapers in the country (Law 20/2002, 39(1)). If irregularities are found the CNE must notify the participant concerned and the participant has 15 days to rectify the irregularities (Law 20/2002, 39(2)). Failure to supply accounts or rectify deficient accounts must be brought to the attention of the Department of Justice by the CNE for legal steps to be taken (Law 20/2002, 39.3.).

Public funding

The electoral law of Mozambique (Law 20/2002, 35.2.) provides for the funding of political parties by the State. According to the law the criteria for the distribution of public party funding is to be determined by the CNE (Law 20/2002, 36). It supplies broad guidelines for the CNE as far as legislative elections are concerned, requiring that the CNE take into account the representation of parties in parliament and the number of candidates fielded in relation to the seats at stake.

Accordingly, the CNE has established the formula of allocating one third of the funding to presidential candidates, one third to political parties represented in parliament in proportion to the seats held by each party and the final third to parties fielding candidates for parliament based on the proportion of candidates fielded (EISA 2004, 12). Funds are distributed in three batches, a first payment of 50% of the funds and two further payments of 25% each; the intention is that the funds in each subsequent stage provided when the funds for the previous stage have been accounted for (EISA 2004, 12). In reality, however, parties failed to account for funds provided and they were not ultimately held accountable (Nuvunga 2005, 70).

References

EISA 2004, EISA Mozambique Election Update 2004 No 1 [PDF document], 4, 5.

LAW 20/2002, 10 OCTOBER 2002, [www] http://www.idea.int/africa/upload/Moz%20Electoral%20Law%207%202004.pdf [PDF document, opens new window] (accessed 24 Oct 2007). For Portuguese see EISA 2004 Manual sobre a Legislação Eleitoral de Moçambique - Eleições Gerais de 2004, Anexo 1, 23 - 75, [www] http://www.idea.int/elections/upload/MANUAL%20DA%20LEI%20ELEITORAL%202004%20Final.pdf [PDF document, opens new window] (accessed 24 Oct 2007).

NUVUNGA, A (ed), 2005, Multiparty Democracy in Mozambique: Strengths, Weaknesses and Challenges [PDF document], EISA Research Report No 14.