Mozambique's Ministry of Education and Culture plans to resume payment of outstanding 2023 overtime arrears owed to 29,466 teachers. The commitment was conveyed by Minister Edson Macuácua to the National Teachers' Organisation (ONP), with disbursements remaining conditional on the availability of state funding.

According to a communiqué issued on Wednesday, 21 October, and cited by Lusa, the Ministry intends to proceed with the settlement of pending amounts before the end of the year.

Of the teachers covered, 24,933 have already received partial payments, while 4,533 have not yet received any amount for overtime worked in 2023. A further 15,866 teachers have their payments for that period fully settled.

Regarding overtime hours accumulated between 2024 and 2026, Macuácua indicated that validation and calculation of the outstanding liability is ongoing, in coordination with the Ministry of Finance, ahead of the definition of a payment plan.

Administrative Processes and Career Progressions

At the same meeting, the minister announced the resolution of administrative processes for 7,076 civil servants covered by 2021 administrative acts that were interrupted following the introduction of the Unified Salary Table (TSU). Of this total, 5,092 are teachers, with the commencement of corresponding payments scheduled for November.

The government also intends to prioritise salary progression for civil servants positioned at the lowest pay grades. Within the education sector, 82,952 teachers at levels 6 to 11 have been identified as meeting the requirements for progression — a process equally dependent on budgetary availability.

The meeting also addressed the reinstatement of the location allowance, whose payment was suspended in recent years. On this issue, the minister assured that negotiations would continue.

Macuácua also advocated for the identification of areas facing the greatest difficulties in teacher placement, the creation of rotation mechanisms, and the mobilisation of partners to improve teacher housing conditions and school infrastructure.

"We want to speak with clarity and responsibility, without creating expectations we cannot fulfil," he said.

Of the teachers covered, 24,933 have already received partial payments, while 4,533 have not yet received any amount for overtime worked in 2023. A further 15,866 teachers have their payments for that period fully settled.

The meeting with the ONP took place just days after Macuácua was sworn in as minister on 19 October. On that occasion, he identified the valorisation of teachers and dialogue with education professionals, students, and parents as priorities of his tenure.

Appointed on 14 October, he replaced Samaria Tovela, who was dismissed by President Daniel Chapo. Prior to his appointment, Macuácua served as Secretary of State for Science and Higher Education, a position for which Isaú Joaquim Menezes has since been designated.

Tovela's dismissal was announced on the same day that she, as minister, criticised teachers' levels of indebtedness and called for better management of their salaries. During the 2nd Coordinating Council of the Ministry of Education and Culture, she stated that some teachers were left with just 200 meticais per month after salary deductions.

Source: Diário Económico
Original article: https://www.diarioeconomico.co.mz/?p=554494