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Updated: March 2009

Mozambique

Overview | World Vision's history in Mozambique | World Vision in Mozambique today

Overview

Located on the southeastern coast of Africa, Mozambique is bordered by Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, and South Africa. The country provides access to the sea for neighboring landlocked countries along its 1,430 miles of coastline. Beyond the coastline of lagoons, coral reefs, and strings of islands lies a vast, low plateau rising toward mountains in the west and north. The plateau, a savannah of dry and open woodlands with tracts of short grass, accounts for nearly half of Mozambique’s total area and contains 25 sizable rivers that flow into the Indian Ocean. The highlands are patched with forest. The weather is tropical with the rainy season from October to March, and the dry season from April to September. Natural resources include coal, titanium, natural gas, hydropower, and graphite.

The Makhuwa ethnic group, encompassing 4 million people, lives primarily in the north, while the Sena people populate the Zambezi valley, and the Tsonga dominate the south. Other groups include the Swahili, Tonga, and Yao. Portuguese is widely spoken throughout the country, but only as a second language; local dialects are spoken primarily. English is used in schools and in business.

Portugal first colonized the Mozambique area in 1505, ruling over it for the next 470 years. After more than a decade of guerilla activity against repressive Portuguese controls, Mozambique gained its independence in June 1975. The country’s first president, Samora Moises Machel, died in a plane crash in 1986, spurring a six-year civil war between the government and antiestablishment guerillas. Machel’s successor, Joaquim Chissanó, won the country’s first democratic election in 1994. Mozambique posted some of the world’s largest economic growth rates in the late 1990s, but later suffered enormous setbacks due to natural disasters in 2000 and 2001. In 2002 President Chissanó announced he would not seek a third term, paving the way for independence hero Armando Guebuza to be sworn in on February 2, 2005.

Flooding in 2007 from Cyclone Favio and heavy seasonal rains in early 2008 displaced more than 87,000 Mozambicans and destroyed homes, livestock, and 876 square miles of crops. The massive flooding left an estimated 660,000 people in need of food assistance.		Mozambique map


Mozambique flag 

Country statistics 
Population21 million
Land mass309,494 square miles
People per square mile68
Life expectancy40.9 years
Under age 5 mortality rate138/1,000
Literacy rate39%
Access to safe water43%
Average annual incomeUS$340
Religion
Christian35.7%
Zionist* 18.7%
Muslim17.8%
Other3.6%
None24.2%
*Zionism is a blend of Christianity and indigenous ancestral worship.
 
 
Floods along the Zambezi, coupled with a drought in the central and southern regions, led to the complete failure of the country’s maize crop. More than 80 percent of the population depends on farming as their way of life—now farming families need assistance because their entire harvests have been destroyed. With the recent flooding and subsequent loss of crops, the country ranks 172 out of 177 nations worldwide on the human development index. The unemployment rate is 21 percent, 70 percent of the population lives below the poverty line, and nearly 80 percent of people survive on less than $2 per day. A substantial trade imbalance also exists: Mozambique is heavily dependent on South Africa for essential food and oil supplies. In return for these commodities, Mozambique exports hydroelectric power to South Africa.

The education and health-care systems in Mozambique have also suffered. Half of all children fail to complete primary school, and only seven percent go on to attend secondary school. Most children elect to join their parents in subsistence farming. HIV, malaria, and malnutrition are the three leading causes for suffering and death among children. The HIV prevalence rate, now at 16 percent, has steadily risen over the last 10 years. Today, 1.8 million people are living with HIV and AIDS, and more than 500,000 children have lost one or both parents to the disease. Nearly half of children under the age of five suffer from stunting as a result of chronic malnutrition.

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World Vision's history in Mozambique

World Vision’s involvement in Mozambique began in 1984 through the provision and distribution of food to 100,000 drought victims. A near-total crop failure in the summer of 1984, followed by a winter harvest reduced by 80 percent, contributed to widespread hunger. People were so anxious for food shipments that they laid tree branches and logs across two dry riverbeds to give large trucks transporting food enough traction to reach remote areas. In addition to drought relief, projects initiated in the mid 1980s through the 1990s included:
  • The Agricultural Recovery Program distributed 260,000 packets of agricultural supplies to war and drought victims. Items included seeds, shovels, pots and pans, foodstuffs, and general household supplies. Farmers were trained to increase crop production and maintain soil fertility.
  • The Tete Village Health Project provided preventive health-care, including immunizations, to vulnerable groups and constructed adequate sanitation facilities and water source protection.
  • The Rural Manica Boreholes Project drilled nine boreholes in four districts, installed hand pumps for villagers to draw water, and trained local men on pump maintenance. The boreholes provided water and improved health conditions for 22,000 residences.
In response to the devastating floods of early 2000, World Vision provided rescue operation assistance, food, and shelter to flood victims. Thousands of houses were damaged or destroyed; families were without food, shelter, and clean drinking water; cholera, diarrheal diseases, and malaria were a threat. As the floodwaters receded, World Vision continued supporting displaced families through the provision of shelter, food, medical inputs, water and sanitation assistance, seeds, and tools to expedite the return to productive and normal lives. Additionally, to promote further development in Mozambique, World Vision assisted families and communities in agriculture, marketing, mother and child health needs, rural infrastructure, microfinance programs, and church relations.

In the last 10 years, World Vision has been involved with improving food security and natural resource management, promoting greater government assistance to farmers, increasing food crop production and diversification, and training church leaders and community members.

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World Vision in Mozambique today

World Vision is committed to partnering with the people of Mozambique to enhance their lives today and to help enact sustainable solutions for the future of their communities, families, and children. Currently, 92,251 children are registered in the World Vision sponsorship program. Several times this number of children and other family members benefit from World Vision activities. Of these registered children, many have World Vision sponsors in other countries. U.S. donors sponsor 28,400 girls and boys. In addition, World Vision operates 28 development programs, six of which are supported by U.S. donors. Highlights of these efforts include the following:
  • The Community Access to Health Services Project is a grant-funded partnership with Johns Hopkins University to provide malaria relief and health education to community members in central Mozambique. Project leaders have provided mosquito nets, established improved malaria treatment, and conducted nutrition training and health education for health workers and community members.
  • World Vision seeks to increase food security to 1,000 people through the Sabe Agricultural Development Project. Nearly 300 head of cattle will be used to reduce time spent in the field, four new seed multiplication fields are being planted, organic fertilizers are being used to enhance soil fertility, and farmers are being trained to grow and commercially market their crops. Women are also being trained in food preparation techniques to reduce the rate of malnutrition in children.
  • The Mozambique Abstinence and Risk Avoidance Project plans to educate more than 700,000 people in the Tete and Zambézia districts to either be faithful to their spouses or practice abstinence as a way to prevent contracting HIV. Youth and parent advisory groups have been established to promote healthy choices, and radio programs are now being aired with the same message.
For more information on World Vision’s programs in Mozambique, please contact the United States office.

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