02 The historic role of IFI’s in Mozambique Mozambique relies heavily on funding deregulation of labour (which lessens from International financial institutions protections such as union membership and (IFIs). The IMF and the World Bank are or minimum wages). the most influential IFI’s in Mozambique, and their funding comes with conditions that the country is required to accept. As Plank (1993) described: SAPs entrenched underdevelopment, worsened poverty and inequality and removed control by national governments over their policy agendas, yet the The Mozambican leaders have been IMF and World Bank insisted on SAPS obliged to cede substantial influence conditionalities (Bazbauers, 2018). By the over domestic political arrangements 1990s, the IMF and World Bank came under and policy choices to external agencies in fire for their policy advice, and were widely order to maintain the flow of aid and avert blamed for trapping developing countries economic collapse (p. 407). in a downward spiral of debt. The IMF and World Bank provided loan Mozambique joined the IMF in 1985, at a funding to developing countries, including time when the country was in a state of Mozambique, with harsh conditions civil war, experiencing a deep financial through a combination of coercion and crisis and had lost support from socialist “technical assistance”. Countries receiving countries. In 1987, Mozambique embarked loans were forced to adopt Structural on the Programa de Reconstrução Económica Adjustment Programmes (SAPs) which (PRE) – the Economic Restructuring involved the liberalization of the economy Program – moving away from socialism to (that is the lessening of government a market economy. regulations and restrictions and greater participation by private entities); the privatization of public services, infrastructure and enterprises; and the Under the PRE, and in line with SAPs, the government privatised almost 1,500 public enterprises. With the goal of creating a “Ultimately, Mozambique needs a people-centred development model. The conditionalities imposed by the IMF and World Bank have undoubtedly undermined the national development processes.“ 11 Fast-tracking Financialization - International Financial Institutions’ Responses to the Covid-19 Pandemic in Mozambique