Working to Improve the Lives of Mozambicans since 1984

USAID assistance to Mozambique began shortly after independence in 1984 in response to natural disasters and humanitarian crises by providing emergency food assistance, commodity imports, and rebuilding infrastructure. With the 1992 Mozambique Peace Agreement ending 16 years of civil war, USAID led programs to support the peace process and, in 1995, developed its first Country Strategic Plan that served as the foundation for U.S. assistance to Mozambique. Since 1984, USAID provided over USD $2.5 billion to Mozambique. USAID recently implemented a new Country Assistance Strategy for 2009-2014 with a current annual program budget of approximately USD $185 million.

Agriculture, Trade and Business
Agriculture is the main economic sector in Mozambique and supports the livelihoods of millions of families, and tourism has the potential to create new jobs, generating income for families. USAID programs currently focus on improving the productivity and competitiveness of these key sectors to fuel economic growth in Mozambique. Programs also support policy reforms that make it easier to open a new business, which has increased the number of small and medium-sized enterprises and increased new foreign investment.

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Health
Over the past ten years, Mozambique has achieved significant progress in improving the overall health of its citizens by providing better health care services. However, many daunting challenges remain. USAID is working to improve the health of Mozambicans by preventing and treating major infectious diseases, improving maternal and child health, and training community health workers from the Ministry of Health at provincial and local health centers to strengthen the Mozambican health care system.

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HIV/AIDS
Since 1995, USAID has been deeply committed to mitigating the impact of HIV/AIDS in Mozambique. The country faces a severe, generalized HIV/AIDS epidemic and the impact could have serious repercussions for generations to come. Through the U.S. Presidential Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), USAID works in close collaboration to implement a comprehensive approach to HIV/AIDS prevention, care and support, treatment, and strengthening the health system throughout Mozambique.

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Democracy and Governance
For the past five years, USAID programs worked to increase transparency and accountability among local government bodies, and improve their capacity to deliver quality public services to all Mozambicans. USAID is committed to promoting democracy and good governance in Mozambique, and new activities are in the final stages of realignment under the new Country Assistance Strategy 2009-2014.

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Education
USAID recently began the assessment and design phase of new education activities and is set to implement the program in 2011. USAID has provided support to the education sector in Mozambique through links between American and Mozambican Universities, the Africa Education Initiative-Ambassador Girls Scholarship Program, and numerous other scholarships in higher education.

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Impact

• USAID agricultural research programs have helped control cassava brown streak disease by developing and disseminating disease-resistant varieties with the Government of Mozambique.

• In 2009, USAID programs assisted the Government of Mozambique in eliminating minimum capital requirements to register a new business, helping Mozambique improve five positions in the World Bank Doing Business report (135 out 183 countries).

• Over the past five years, community health workers have provided nearly 3 million women and children with vitamin A supplements to improve their nutrition and health.

• USAID reached more than 3 million Mozambicans through HIV prevention activities, distributed 24 million condoms, and provided HIV counseling and testing to more than 535,000 Mozambicans in 2009 alone.

Joint DoS-USAID Strategic Plan
2009-2014 Country Assistance Strategy