Ireland's Assistance to Mozambique
The Government of Mozambique has made a sustained effort to tackle poverty and proposes to reduce the incidence of absolute poverty from its present level of 70% to 50% by 2010. The Government aims to achieve this objective by developing policies which promote economic and social development and increase the supply and quality of essential public services. Donors, including Ireland, have pledged to provide the necessary financial resources to assist the Government in meeting its objectives.
Programme Administration
Irish Aid began its aid programme with Mozambique in 1996. Support is governed by a Country Strategy Paper which is agreed with the Government of Mozambique every three years, the current one running from 2001 to 2003. The overall objective of the strategy is to maintain a clear focus on basic needs and poverty reduction, while taking into account new interventions, including sector programming and budgetary support.
The Irish Aid programme in Mozambique is administered by the Embassy of Ireland in Maputo, which is staffed by the Chargé d'affaires, a Third Secretary, three development specialists and eight sector advisors. The Desk Officer in Dublin assists in the formulation of strategy, as well as the preparation of project proposals, their defence and the obtaining of approval for them.
Individual Sectors
Health
Irish Aid works closely with the Ministry of Health in Maputo and the Provincial Directorates of Health in Niassa and Inhambane in developing their strategic plans and health policies. Irish Aid provides funding to cover the costs of pharmaceutical purchases, to meet recurrent costs incurred in the provinces and to support the development of the health sector as a whole.
Education
The Government of Mozambique's Education Sector Strategic Plan, which is the basis for donor support to the sector, aims to increase access to education at all levels of the system and to improve teacher training services. Irish Aid funds are provided for a national schoolbooks purchase fund, curriculum development, gender and HIV/AIDS issues and institutional development and capacity building.
Agriculture
Irish Aid has played a key role in the development and funding of the national agriculture sector reform programme. The programme is aimed at improving the quality of agriculture in rural areas and increasing agricultural productivity across the country.
HIV/AIDS
Irish Aid helps fund the National AIDS Council, the overall co-ordinating body for HIV/AIDS activities in the country, and also provides support to NGOs and community organisations involved in education and prevention activities, as well as care and support for those individuals and their families who have been touched by the pandemic.
In August of 2004 the Irish Government announced the provision of €6 million to kick-start an agreement between the Irish Aid programme in Mozambique and the Clinton Foundation on a collaborative arrangement with the Ministry of Health in Maputo for the provision of treatment for AIDS sufferers. The full Irish commitment will amount to €40 million over five years.
This is the first occasion that Development Cooperation Ireland (Irish Aid), has become involved in the provision of anti-retroviral treatment for AIDS sufferers. Irish Aid has, proportionately, one of the largest HIV/AIDS programmes of donor countries, with a special HIV/AIDS budget-line of €30 million and approximately another €20 million spent on providing other support to fighting the pandemic.
Public Sector Reform
Irish Aid has supported reform through the establishment and development of the Public Administration Training Programme and the establishment of the Technical Unit for Public Sector Reform, as well as by contributing to a UNDP programme, which provides technical assistance on reform measures to Provincial government.
Governance
Areas of assistance in this sector include continued support for local radio stations under the UNESCO media project, promotion of human rights of prisoners and other aspects of judicial reform.
Budgetary Support
Irish Aid is contributing €5.8 million in general budget support to the Government of Mozambique in 2003. This enables the government to allocate additional resources in support of programmes aimed at poverty reduction in a mire planned manner.
Provincial Level Support
At provincial level, Irish Aid provides funding to the provincial governments of Niassa, in the north of the country and Inhambane, in the south, to facilitate these administrations in delivering key social services to poor rural communities.
Irish Aid Spending in Mozambique, 1998-2004 (€m)
| 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6.54 | 8.1 | 14.74 | 19.7 | 29.77 | 31.19 | 36 |
Source: Development Cooperation Ireland.
