Help for Mozambique

Our support for Mozambique follows an integral approach: The factors health, environment and renewable energy play together so that we can sustainably improve the living conditions of the people in the province of Sofala.

Since 2000, Hilfswerk International has been assisting people in the province of Sofala - one of the poorest provinces in Mozambique - on their way to a better future. In the Hilfswerk International projects, the "ComuSanas" approach strengthens the health, environment and renewable energy sectors. ComuSanas means mutual aid as well as healthy villages - and describes an integral approach to improving the situation of the people of Mozambique. Our approach successfully reduced maternal and child mortality in Sofala:

Malnutrition, severe work during pregnancy and a lack of hygiene are the main reasons for this. In addition, many women suffer from malaria, HIV, cholera, or other diseases that may lead to major complications during pregnancy or birth.

Existing, national health stations are difficult to reach, especially for women in rural areas. With the involvement of the local population, Hilfswerk International is setting up houses for the care of mothers. The birth houses are also places where the women can exchange, get and give help – but above all they can prepare themselves for the birth of their children:

The integrated river basin management at community level offers the possibilities to reconcile the interests of the people with the flora and fauna. We provide assistance by training the communities in sustainable production methods, promoting the processing and marketing of agricultural products and thus contributing to food security.

Another critical issue in Mozambique is the deforestation of trees for the extraction of new arable land. The ecosystem on the Buzi and Pungue rivers suffers. The rivers are an important source of life for many fishermen and other inhabitants. The inhabitants are therefore interested in the preservation of the ecosystem and are being made aware of the projects of Hilfswerk International, to reap the trees and create arable land off the riverbank. Thus the sensitive ecosystems, which represent the habitat of many fish and crustaceans, are not destroyed.

In another project component Hilfswerk International promotes a holistic and participatory management of the mangrove ecosystem along the coasts of Sofala, which contributes to food security and the protection of the environment in the province of Sofala. Sustainable agricultural practices and income support methods are also being implemented in line with the local mangrove forests in the project area.

At the same time, Mozambique has a considerable potential for sustainable energy, which is hardly being used at all. This is why our projects are based on many sustainable sources of energy. We also train rural communities to deal with renewable energy sources.