Mozambique’s Finance Minister, Adriano Maleiane, has dismissed fears that China might seize the country's assets in case of a payment default for loans.

The minister told lawmakers on Thursday that the fears were groundless

“There are no indications of this”, he said.

He said that Mozambique’s debt to China had so far respected parameters agreed between the two countries.

Mr Maleiane put Mozambique’s total debt to China at $2bn (£1.5bn).

The vast majority of the debt – about $1.97bn – is owed to the Chinese Exim Bank, which financed major infrastructure projects, including the Maputo Ring Road and the suspension bridge over the Bay of Maputo.

The minister said the projects would eventually pay for themselves through toll gates.

But opposition MP, Venancio Mondlane, challenged the minister's optimism, suggesting that it would take 75 years to pay off the debt for building the suspension bridge at the current rate of toll collection.

The minister did not respond to a question on whether any infrastructure project financed by China had ever made a profit.