Chimoio, October 14th, 2021 – After almost 30 years since the Peace agreement signed on the 4th of October 1992 in Rome, when the Italian Government played a facilitating role to stop the civil war in Mozambique, Italy nowadays, through the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation, is back to support a new path of peace, disarmament and social reintegration with socio-economic activities in those areas of the Country where fights still occurred in the recent years, before 2019 peace agreement.
Within an official ceremony, at the presence of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Veronica Macamo Dlhovo, the EU Ambassador to Mozambique Antonio Sanchez-Benedito Gaspar and Italian Ambassaodr to Maputo Gianni Bardini, together with local and international partners, DELPAZ has been launched in Mozambique, funded by the European Union with 25 MLN EUR. DELPAZ is a well-structured programme to be implemented in 14 districts in Manica, Tete and Sofala Provinces, where local institutions enhancement activities will strenghten services for those beneficiares that mostly have been affected by the conflict. Trainings, infrastructural interventions and rural production’s value chain development will allow a good integration of communities in the local market.
“DELPAZ represents for the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation a further opportunity to support development and peace in the most conflict-affected areas of the country” stated Ginevra Letizia, Head of AICS Maputo.
This action is pursued in the framework of a general peace plan in these areas, where thousands of ex-combats and their families will be provided with several tools to enhance their fragile life conditions and get back to their communities.
Activities implemented by AICS, that for the first time is managing a programme delegated by the European Union in Mozambique, for a total amount of 11 MLN EUR, will take place in Manica (5 districts) and Tete Provinces (3 districts); main programme’s stakeholders are Austrian Cooperation – ADA, responsible for activities in Sofala Province, and UNCDF (United Nations for Capital Development Fund), with a focus on local development and institutional enhancement.
Moreover, DELPAZ is part of an Italian commitment for rural development in Mozambique, intertwined with environmental issues and cross-cutting themes particularly crucial: DELPAZ will activate special focus on economic inclusion, on an environmentally sustainable agriculture development, on production diversification with the final aim to gather objectives and beneficiaries with a global vision.
Relying on a wide and efficient system of partnerships, that characterizes AICS approach all over the world, DELPAZ aims at contributing to the peace process at sub-national level, aware that only activating development mechanisms and socio-economic growth will be possible to reach a full Peace.