Enhancing Agricultural Production and Improving Access to Food in Mozambique - GCP/MOZ/111/EC

Project's full title	Enhancing Agricultural Production and Improving Access to Food in Mozambique - GCP/MOZ/111/EC
Introduction	The outcome of the project was to enhance agricultural production, improve access to food and improve dietary intake and feeding practices. Three specific objectives were defined, corresponding to the three pillars of food security and nutrition, namely ( i ) enhancing agricultural and fisheries production (food availability), (ii) increasing access to food and (iii) improving nutrition. In order to achieve the above results, 16 result components were defined and implemented.
Country	European Union Mozambique
Start date	01/06/2013
End date	30/06/2019
Status	Closed
Donor	European Union
Recipient / Target Areas	Mozambique
Budget	USD 28 388 614
Project Code	GCP/MOZ/111/EC
Objective / Goal	The outcome of the project was to enhance agricultural production, improve access to food and improve dietary intake and feeding practices. Three specific objectives were defined, corresponding to the three pillars of food security and nutrition, namely (i) enhancing agricultural and fisheries production (food availability), (ii) increasing access to food and (iii) improving nutrition. In order to achieve the above results, 16 result components were defined and implemented. The result components overseen by FAO (those regarding seeds, e-vouchers, vaccination, post-harvest and nutrition) were mainly built around the component of Farmer Field Schools, as the main approach to introducing new knowledge and technologies at household level. This contributed to harmonizing the targeting of beneficiaries, intervention implementation and monitoring and evaluation of expected results. A different approach was used under the result component focusing on nutrition education and home gardens, whereby nutrition education of schoolchildren was implemented through primary schools. Specifically, the technical assistance provided by the project was focused in the following thematic areas: (i) enhancing agricultural and poultry production through improved access to inputs and advisory services, improved access to poultry vaccination promotion of home gardens for women and reducing post-harvest losses, (ii) increasing access to adequate appropriate food through improved infrastructure and linkages with buyers, investing in social capital-building through support to farmers´ organizations and market information systems and (iii) direct interventions to improve nutrition by diversifying food production and support for food fortification to improve access to essential nutrients and provide nutrition education for adults and children.
Partners	Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Ministry of Education and Human Development, Provincial and District Governments
Beneficiaries	Households and community members, farmers participating in Farmer Field Schools, women engaging in home gardens and children receiving nutrition education
Activities	21.2 tonnes of pre-basic seed and 156 tonnes of basic seed of different crops (maize, bean, rice, groundnut, sorghum, cowpea and vulgar bean) produced following agreement with the Mozambique Institute of Agricultural Research. 1 682 demonstration plots portraying different crop varieties of selected crops established, giving the producer the opportunity to evaluate the adaptability and performance (yield, pest and disease resistance, climate adaptation) of crop varieties such as maize, rice and bean. 72 groups of seed producers (farmer field schools, farmer associations and private producers) identified and trained on different topics related to seed production and seed business management. Study tours conducted to Zambia and Zimbabwe on field inspection procedure and exchange of experience, respectively. E-voucher programme introduced for farmers in the country, serving to increase sales and availability of improved agricultural inputs. 25 775 farmers benefited from technical assistance and exposure to agriculture technologies (new seed varieties, improved inputs, storage facilities, etc.). 961 farmer field schools established, involving 25 775 farmers, of whom 60 percent were women. Production of vaccination against Newcastle Disease for poultry increased from 1 200 000 doses per year to more than 17 million. To combat post-harvest losses, local artisans were trained and equipped in the construction of Gorongosa silos. 4 250 silos constructed on a cost sharing basis. 19 048 households (45.3 percent of them female) exposed to post-harvest handling and quality upgrading techniques. A total of 1 500 teachers trained in nutrition and methods of delivering nutrition education at schools. In addition, training of trainers was provided to selected teachers on nutrition education. As a result, more than 50 000 school children were exposed to nutrition education and hygiene. 280 care group mothers per district established and trained. Each voluntary mother worked with an average of 10 to 12 beneficiary mothers, reaching a total of 31 226 beneficiary mothers in seven districts. 33 396 home gardens installed by beneficiary mothers, improving the availability of fruit and vegetables.
Impact	There is compelling evidence that the FAO sub-programme contributed to the improvement of some important factors determining food and nutrition security in Mozambique, such as (i) a reduced percentage of households that have their own agricultural production with fewer than five months of food reserves and (ii) a 17 percent increase in the productivity of maize for farmers involved (compared to the baseline figure). The project focused significantly on capacity-building, in particular multisectoral coordination and training of the main implementing partners (such as government staff, community-based organization staff and the private sector) in procedures, contents and methods related to the implementation of each programme component. As a result, the institutional capacity of the different project partners was significantly strengthened with a view to working towards the country’s food and nutrition security in the future. Meanwhile the provision of equipment and materials to some of the implementing partners, such as District Services for Economic Activities and community organizations, enabled them to better deliver their services. This was reflected in the active engagement of stakeholders during the implementation, particularly at government level, which contributed effectively to the sustainability of the sub-programme’s interventions.
Contact	FAO Representation in Mozambique - [email protected]
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