Last week the European Union  granted the Mozambican Government 67.3 Million Euros for the support to achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), specifically the result MDG 1c – to reduce by half the amount of people suffering from hunger by 2015. Mozambique received the highest amount among the 36 countries funded by the MDG initiative. The programme will be implemented with the support of the three Rome-based UN agencies FAO, IFAD and WFP.

During the signing ceremony with the Deputy-Minister of foreign affairs and cooperation of Mozambique, Henrique Banze, the Head of EU delegation Paul Malin, said that this support to accelerate the achievement of the MDGs is justified because Mozambique is a country  “...where, despite very high rates of growth, poverty levels remain so high that everybody finds it unacceptable...”, he also said  that there must be concrete and visible results, and that the process should flag transparency and good governance.

These additional funds  come in addition to the 622 million Euros financial aid package of the 10th European Development Fund for 2008-2013.

Significant progress towards the MDG 1 can be achieved if coordinated interventions are implemented to increase levels of food security and nutrition as well as agricultural and fishing productivity and production.

It is within this context that the Government of Mozambique together with the UN agencies has designed the programme to cover three main areas namely, enhance agricultural and fisheries production; increase access to markets; and improve food security and nutrition.

Sources: “O país” newspaper on the 28^th of March, 2012; Concept Note: Accelerating progress towards the Millennium Development goal 1c in Mozambique