Our children in 2025

Our children in 2025

Opinion Leaders and Cabinet Ministers About the Future of Children in Mozambique


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Our Children in 2025 Opinion Leaders and Cabinet Ministers About the Future of Children in Mozambique Interviews are in alphabetical order

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The publication may be reproduced for educational or non‑profit purposes without permission from the copyright holder, providing acknowledgement of the source is made. © UNICEF, Maputo, Moçambique, 2014

UNICEF Mozambique

In August 2013, journalist Tomás Vieira Mário met with some of the country’s most influential opinion leaders to discuss one topic on our behalf: the future of children in Mozambique. At the same time, during discussions with UNICEF Representative Koenraad Vanormelingen in August and September 2013 about government priorities and challenges, cabinet ministers of the Mozambican Government shared their views about the future of children. This publication includes excerpts from these conversations. From the former president and prime ministers to renowned academics and NGO activists, all were asked to reply to the same set of questions about what the future looks like for children and what we should all be paying attention to, to make sure the future for children in Mozambique remains bright. The importance of education was highlighted by many of the respondents, who often elevated it to the number one priority for children. Nutrition and the need to eradicate hunger was another urgent issue that featured prominently. Concern was raised almost unanimously about how natural resource wealth could eventually affect society. Some mentioned the possibility of unrest, others were more optimistic, with many emphasizing the need to make sure wealth trickles all the way down to the least fortunate in society, especially children. IN PRIME MINISTER ALBERTO VAQUINA’S WORDS:

“The child is a beautiful flower that benefits from all the care of the gardener. The child represents the future.”


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“....we are increasing efforts to control endemic diseases such as HIV and AIDS.”

AIUBA CUERENEIA MINISTER OF PL ANNING AND DEVELOPMENT Aiuba Cuereneia has been Minister of Planning and Development since 2005. He is also the Governor of Mozambique at the World Bank, African Development Bank, and the International Fund for Agricultural Development. Previously, he worked at the Ministry of State Administration. Mr Cuereneia is an economist.

How are children reflected in your ministry’s work and priorities? In our work on social issues, primary education is high on the agenda. And I think it should be linked to agriculture. The government is investing in voca‑ tional training. At present, all 128 districts have a secondary school. The idea is for all districts to have vocational training centres, as well. In health, we are increasing efforts to control endemic diseases such as HIV and AIDS. The priorities are to control the number of new infections, as well as to expand the antiretroviral treatment (ART). It is being implemented in all districts, but the challenge is to control the drop-out rates, the main cause of which is patients’ nutritional capacity. In social protection, the government provides direct assistance through direct cash transfers to the elderly as well as to orphaned and vulnerable children, in an effort to reduce disparities and development that is more inclusive. These are all part of the pillar on poverty alleviation in the government 5-year plan.

“...the government envisions a society where the child is a beautiful flower that benefits from all the care of the gardener...”

ALBERTO VAQUINA PRIME MINISTER OF MOZ AMBIQUE Alberto Clementino António Vaquina was appointed Prime Minister of Mozambique in 2012. A medical doctor by training, he is the former governor of the provinces of Sofala and Tete. He has worked as a doctor in Nampula province, and was provincial director of Health in Cabo Delgado and Nampula.

What challenges remain in fulfilling children’s rights in Mozambique today? A challenge for us is full compliance with the Convention of the Rights of the Child because of the diversity of Mozambique. Children in rural areas face different challenges than their peers in urban or peri-urban areas. With this in mind, the government envisions a society where the child is a beautiful flower that benefits from all the care of the gardener. The child represents the future. What areas does the government prioritise in meeting those challenges? Government priorities include improving access and quality of education, in particular for women and girls, which has a direct relation to poverty. We re‑ cognize that the illiteracy rate is very high, so adult education or alphabetisation programmes for women and girls are extremely important. Education is the key to ensure sustainable and longer term development, and key in preparing today’s youngsters for tomorrow’s labour force. Education is directly linked to health, as well as to better life conditions in future. What about other sectors such as health and protection? In health, my government recognizes the encouraging progress made towards reducing under-5 child mortality, but neonatal and maternal mortality rates need to be reduced further. Focus is on and should be given to preventive health, as well as curative health and assistance. Chronic malnutrition is serious at 42%, and government should ensure food security, but families’ use of food is important to tackle, as well. The issue is not only scarcity, but the proper combination of when and where food is available. In terms of protection, we want to provide a safe environment for our children with

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UNICEF Mozambique

social protection systems in place that will shield them from harm, violence, sexual abuse and exploitation. How can communities be involved in this work? Community leaders have been fundamental in the implementation of govern‑ ment programmes. Community health workers and the religious leaders are instrumental to passing the right messages to communities, but community or traditional leaders could also be involved in this work. It is important to UNICEF and its partners to provide them with needed skills and competencies. They can also easily mobilise and educate the communities for behaviour change in relation to nutrition, girls’ education, HIV and AIDS and in other areas. What about the extractive industry and the effects on children? With the development of the extractive industry, it’s important to minimize any negative impact on children and young people. In Tete City for example, like in other boomtowns, we are concerned by the concentration of large numbers of immigrants living without their families, which could have a significant impact on young peoples’ lives. People in similar condition tend to become exposed to social harms such as HIV and AIDS. Child sexual exploitation and child labour become issues of concern.

“When we speak of children’s problems in Mozambique, one great gap always springs into sight: there is no policy and strategy for children in Mozambique.”

ALBINO FRANCISCO COORDINATOR OF THE NET WORK OF CIVIL SOCIET Y ORGANISATIONS FOR CHILDREN’S RIGHTS Albino Francisco, Coordinator of ROSC, the Network of Civil Society Organisations for Children’s Rights, a not-for-profit whose purpose is capacity building, advocacy and social mobilisation in order to advance and protect children’s rights. ROSC facilitates coordination among all Civil Society Organisations interested in children’s affairs, seeking to exchange experiences and information, and creating synergies so that the furtherance and protection of children’s rights, is done in a more articulated and effective manner, allowing the expansion of results, all in the best interests of children.


What is your vision of Mozambique, 5-10 years from now? In terms of vision, in ten years’ time, we could hope to see all Mozambican children free from all forms of violence. Another worrying question is juvenile justice, a question of great concern about which not much is said. Many of these children end up receiving the same treatment that is given to adults, in the same prison cells as adults. We don’t have any specialist courts to judge cases of children in conflict with the law. Other areas include the survival and development of children. We speak of increased access to education, that we are going to attain the Millennium Goals, but the problem of quality is always posed. We still find many children who end seventh grade with serious reading and writing problems. Girls, particularly in the countryside, are unable to get through primary education and finish secondary education because of premature marriages. The lack of access to healthcare causes infant and child mortality. Trafficking in children is a problem, but it should not be equated to the other problems already mentioned. Data doesn’t exist. There are some isolated studies that speak of the phenomenon, but we still can’t speak about this with much certainty. When we speak of children’s problems in Mozambique one great gap always springs into sight: there is no Policy and Strategy for children in Mozambique. There have been National Plans of Action for Children (PNAC). Now we have PNAC II. After PNAC I, the expectation was that the govern‑ ment would formulate a National Children’s Policy and Strategy. But this did not happen. ROSC made clear our position to government that the country needs a national children’s policy and strategy. Only on the basis of a policy can we focus and bind interventions of government, foreign partners, civil society organisations, in a pre-defined direction, with priority areas, etc. With the national plan the government would also allocate resources for imple‑ menting it. And now, with the extractives and other industries, there is much talk about corporate social responsibility. A national children’s policy would clearly state how companies should intervene towards children, and not leave each one to do as they like, as happens now. 5

This becomes still more serious when we know that, at government level, the children’s area is looked after by two ministries: the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Women’s Affairs and Social Welfare (MMAS). And MMAS is a ministry relegated to a secondary role in terms of resources and institutional capacity. For this reason all the activity undertaken in Mozambique, in the absence of a National Policy, is action of more militant groups, more motivated individually, and not action implementing as a general policy of the country. What should UNICEF do to contribute better to child development in the next 5 to 10 years? Perhaps more can be done to strengthen institutional capacity building, and assist government, with the participation of all interested sectors, in drawing up a national children’s policy and strategy for the next 5 to 10 years. This would have more impact than one-off measures. A national children’s policy that holds all sectors responsible and accountable would be the main challenge. It would also be important to work to achieve better coordination between all sectors involved in actions in favour of children. Another task that UNICEF could perform is to document, to make in-depth studies which can serve as a basis on which policies can be grounded.

“During the flood season, a key challenge for the ministry is minimising school disruption for children.”

ALCINDA DE ABREU MINISTER FOR COORDINATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS Alcinda António de Abreu was appointed Minister for Coordination of Environmental Affairs in 2008. Prior to that, she was Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation and Minister for Coordination of Social Action. She has a Master’s Degree in Rural Development and a degree in Psychology and Pedagogy.

How are children prioritised in the Ministry’s work? One of our tasks is to ensure that the curriculum from the secondary education includes environmental issues. For example, we work with Clubes Ambientais that are based in schools. The most visible intervention was the launch of the presidential initiative “One Child, One Tree”, and other activities, such as gardening and cleaning schools. In a country that consistently experiences floods and drought, one of the key challenges has been to reserve water throughout the dry season through rainwater harvesting systems. Another issue is groundwater salinity, which hinders access to drinking water by the coastal population, as well as affects agricultural productivity. During the flood season, a key challenge for the ministry is minimising school disruption for children. This is something that requires coordination with other entities involved in education and disaster management. We work in resilience and mitigation activities, as well, such as planting trees and reforestation. What about the environmental impact of the extractive industry? Environmental legislation in Mozambique is very strong compared to nei‑ ghbouring countries. We do not conduct environmental studies for economic activities. The companies themselves, before starting their operation, are obliged to conduct environmental impact studies. Our role is to develop the terms of reference and thereafter analyse the studies through social, biological, and economic lenses. We work in close cooperation with the ministries of Health, Agriculture, and others. Companies that intend to implement projects are recommended to develop a plan for environmental management and resettlement (if needed). The regulation also recommends a public consul‑ tation within the communities or through radio programs. MICOA plays a role during public audiences but the capacity is limited.

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UNICEF Mozambique

“We need to decrease maternal and neonatal mortality rates.”

ALEXANDRE MANGUELE MINISTER OF HE ALTH Alexandre Lourenço Jaime Manguele has been the Minister of Health since 2010. A physician specialized in Public Health, he has served as director and chief medical officer in several provinces of Mozambique, and as National Director for Public Health for over 10 years, before becoming Minister.

What are the Ministry’s priorities for maternal and child health? We have made good progress in reducing child mortality but we need to decrease maternal and neonatal mortality rates. Increasing the number of and access to skilled birth attendants is key to achieving this, together with community-based interventions. Immunisation is an area where the Ministry has a longstanding experience with UNICEF, the results of which are the de‑ crease in under-5 child mortality thanks to very high immunisation coverage. We would like to make all recommended vaccines available in Mozambique. The pneumococcus vaccine was introduced to fight respiratory diseases, major killers of children under 5 in our country. In 2014, we hope to introduce the Rotavirus vaccine, which can potentially reduce diarrheal deaths of un‑ der-5’s by 40%. We are hoping to introduce the malaria vaccine, specifically as it is being studied at the Manhiça Investigation Centre, as well as the HPV vaccine for adolescent girls, proven to prevent cervical cancer. What about HIV and access to treatment? The Ministry remains committed to the elimination of mother-to-child trans‑ mission of HIV and we are seeking increased support to roll out option B+ and expect that, as part of this roll-out, mothers can be encouraged to bring their children to health centers to receive anti-retroviral treatment. And malaria? Access to rapid diagnostic and free treatment with ACT has improved. We currently use both indoor residual spraying (IRS) and the distribution of bed nets (LLIN) to fight malaria. Last year, IRS targets were not met. We feel the Ministry should use all available means to combat malaria, i.e. both IRS and LLIN, even though some say the Ministry of Health should only distribute LLINs.

“We aim to reduce illiteracy to 30% by 2015.”

AUGUSTO JONE LUÍS MINISTER OF EDUCATION Augusto Jone Luís has been Minister of Education since 2012. He has degrees in pedagogy and education, and is a teacher by profession. He has held many administrative and academic positions related to education.


How would you describe the progress achieved in education in Mozambique? In 1975, the country inherited an illiteracy rate of 97%, which 5 years later was reduced to 72%. It is now 48%. The strategy to combat illiteracy aims at reducing this rate to 30% by 2015. In 1979 the country had 7,000 schools. After the war in 1992, it was down to 3500, but today there are more than 15,000 schools in Mozambique. But this rapid expansion has created some problems, such as quality, the student/teacher ratio, lack of desks, classes being held under trees. The student/teacher ratio has decreased from 75 to 63 students per teacher today. Maputo and Gaza have smaller ratios of 4850, in Zambezia and Nampula they are higher than the national average. Our main priority is to improve the quality of learning.

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How important is gender in education? We are now moving towards gender parity, and there are cases in which there are more women than men. For this, an important strategy is to catalyse the placement of teachers in schools and ensure that the concerns of female teachers are addressed. What about inclusive education for children with disabilities? To demonstrate the importance we attach to inclusive education, the Go‑ vernment has created a Department of Special Education, as well as three regional Resource Centers for Inclusive Education, or CREIs. What is being done to increase school enrolment? We want children to enrol at age 6. A student who is barely literate in first grade will potentially continue to be illiterate in the future. There were two problems: the short time for enrolment and the low number of birth regis‑ tration. We extended the registration period for the first class, which now begins in October and lasts until December, and enrol children even without birth registration, if one person can witness the age of the child. It is what we call “provisional enrolment”. What about vocational and technical education? We have a curriculum for secondary education and want to focus on voca‑ tional and technical education. The country only has 100 technical schools, and we need to change the idea that these are for the poor only. Today everyone wants higher education, but then become unemployed. So it’s important to strengthen vocational schools that can lead to employment or self-employment.

“Let’s develop the country, let’s benefit from our resources, but with a lot of justice, social justice. There can be no discrimination.”

SHEIK AMINUDIN MOHAMAD CHAIR OF COUNCIL OF RELIGIONS Sheik Aminudin Mohamad graduated from the University of Islamic Theology in Karachi, Pakistan, and in Medina, Saudi Arabia. He was a religious advisor to the Islamic Community of Lisbon (Portugal) from 1980 to 1985. Currently he performs various duties of religious leadership and inter-religious dialogue, and with various civil society programmes, including as chair of the Islamic Council of Mozambique and of the Council of Religions of Mozambique. Sheik Aminudin Mohamad has written about 20 books dealing with various themes in Islam.

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What vision do you have of Mozambique, 5, 10 years from now? Everybody now has some expectation of seeing our country moving more rapidly forward. I have followed the situation in many African countries where there are resources, and automatically outside hands appear to create intrigue among the population, instigate wars to allow others to enter the country to extract these resources. I think everything begins and ends in the training of people. Nobody should feel that he is being left out, that he doesn’t benefit. For later we might fall into conflict, and we become divided. Let’s develop the country, let’s benefit from our resources, but with a lot of justice, social justice. There can be no discrimination. And from this perspective, how do you see Mozambican children in 2025? This is a very important question for us and for our future. When we are talking about children, I think it is very important for us to see how we can guarantee for our children first family affection and love, because it is on the basis of this that education comes, because it is customarily said that the cradle, and the mother’s lap, is the first school, even before going to the crèche, etc. What other challenges can you identify for the future of our children? It seems that we need to be clear about what we want to do. What development do we want here? Perhaps UNICEF can help us think. We have to define what we consider to be development. Is it development to have tall apartment blocks? Is it development to have large supermarkets? Lots of cars, that is: material goods? We need a balance, of material development with spiritual development. Apart from good supermarkets, cars, etc., we also need well-educated people, with strong ethical principles, respect for their elders. UNICEF Mozambique

“No child should go without being vaccinated, no child should be outside of school, no child should live in a house without electricity.”

BRAZÃO MAZULA CHAIRPERSON OF THE CENTRE OF DEMOCR ACY STUDIES Prof. Brazão Mazula, public intellectual, chairperson of the Centre of Democracy Studies (CEDE). Brazão Mazula has a Ph.D. in History and Philosophy of Education from the University of São Paulo. He was the Chairperson of the National Elections Commission (CNE) that successfully organised the first democratic multi-party elections in the history of Mozambique in 1994. He was also Vice-Chancellor of the Eduardo Mondlane University, where he teaches at the Social Science Faculty.

What is your vision of Mozambique, 5-10 years from now? Mozambique has been characterised by historic movements every 10 years: the armed struggle for independence was waged successfully in 10 years. The first vision of Mozambique’s development in the 1980s was to take the country out of poverty in 10 years. The two constitutional terms of office of the President of the Republic add up to 10 years, etc. I see Mozambique very concentrated on the question of peace in the next 10 years, a peace that cannot be reduced simply to the silencing of the guns. I see peace as the happiness of citizens, the possibility of moving anywhere in search of better living conditions, without fear. In 10 years’ time, children should have safe transport to school. We should become a country that never allows a child to go to war. What will the situation of Mozambican children be like in 2025? The rational exploitation of our resources could make Mozambique a country of medium human development by 2025. The exploitation of natural resources causes new phenomena in society, which we should deal with wisely, such as new migratory movement. Citizens of various nationalities are coming to the country and they relate with us, and from this relationship children are born. It is important to guarantee, for example, that they are registered. This means that no child should go without being vaccinated, no child should be outside of school, no child should live in a house without electricity. We still have premature marriages, girls forced to marry when they are 10 or 12 years old, and a lot of violence. The trafficking in children is also a very serious problem.

“Sanitation, both rural and peri-urban, remains a key challenge.”

CADMIEL MUTHEMBA MINISTER OF PUBLIC WORKS AND HOUSING Cadmiel Filiane Muthemba has been Minister of Public Works and Housing since 2010. Prior to that, Mr. Muthemba was Minister of Fishery from 20002009. He has a High School diploma, and has held many administrative positions related to State Administration, and Agriculture and Fishery.


What are the main challenges that remain in your sector? Sanitation, both rural and peri-urban, remains a key challenge. For many years, more attention was given to water supply and less to sanitation both in terms of institutional development and resource allocation. A new institution – Administration of Water Supply and Sanitation infrastructure (AIAS) – was recently established with primary responsibilities for overall management of public water and supply systems in small towns and sanitation systems in both main and small towns. What about sustainable water supply services in small towns? This is another challenge. Currently many of the water supply systems in small towns are being managed by the district governments, but we need to promote and build the capacity of private service providers to take over effective and efficient management of those systems. Finally, we need to reinforce intersectoral coordination and collaboration among social sectors, including water & sanitation, health, education, for complementarity and to maximise results. 9

“Premature marriage is still a problem, but people are waking up, particularly mothers.”

ENEAS DA CONCEIÇÃO COMICHE ECONOMIST, POLITICIAN Dr. Eneas da Conceição Comiche is an economist and politician, who has held several posts in the central government, parliament and in the Maputo municipality. He is a FRELIMO deputy in the Assembly of the Republic, where he chairs the parliamentary Plan and Budget Commission. In the private sector, he was Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the International Bank of Mozambique (BIM), the largest commercial bank in the country.

What is your vision for Mozambique in 2025? My vision is of a more united Mozambique at peace, and deepening democracy, which are the indispensable conditions for the fight against poverty, leading to its eradication. If all the actions in the agricultural sphere are successful, we can reduce the current indices of poverty to half by 2015 and reduce hunger. Clearly there are challenges we must face with a lot of care: better control of natural disasters, in the sense of better prevention and greater capacity to mitigate their effects. And how do you see Mozambican children in 2025? Naturally all these scenarios affect children, because they touch on food security, and hence on children’s nutrition. It’s also clear that by then we shall significantly improve the level of primary health care and the quality of nutrition for our children. Infant mortality rate is falling. The distance be‑ tween children’s homes and their school has also been falling, as well as the distance to health posts. Access to clean drinking water is also improving, and with many water supply infrastructures under construction, the rate will increase, although we recognise that we might still face problems in reaching the Millennium Goals. There are other challenges we must meet. Premature marriage is still a problem, but people are waking up, particularly mothers. Considering the past, and taking the present into account, what elements do you note which could support this vision of the future of Mozambique? What is very important now is to guarantee that the natural resources really are exploited in a sustainable manner, and that they benefit the country and the children, to avoid the scenario that in 20 or 40 years’ time we are just a country full of enormous holes. There should be a deeper debate to take the most vulnerable strata of society into consideration. Things are happening more quickly than we had predicted. How would UNICEF collaborate better in Mozambique? I think the work UNICEF has done and actions of advocacy, through civil society organisations, should continue and be stepped up, in order to gua‑ rantee that the resources of the state are channelled as a matter of priority to the neediest social sectors, including capacity building actions, both for the NGOs and for the legislators themselves. Legislative procedures are extremely important but there are still great weaknesses, particularly in the Provincial Assemblies. And these bodies are extremely important because they work precisely where the neediest communities are, they have a more direct relation with the population but have the least capacity to control and inspect government actions.

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UNICEF Mozambique

“Government is looking to maximise the benefits of extractive industry development.”

ESPERANÇA BIAS MINISTER OF MINER AL RESOURCES Esperança Laurinda Francisco Nhiuane Bias was appointed Minister of Mineral Resources in 2005. She has a degree in Management and has served in various positions in several departments of the Ministry, before becoming Minister.

What is the Ministry’s position vis-à-vis the extractive industry? All Mozambican policies are designed to maximize the benefits for Mozambi‑ cans. The coal in Mozambique was discovered in 1960, and in 1980, mining operations started with a production of 800,000 tons per year. Now, Tete is producing around 7 million tons per year. With such an increase in coal production, the Government decided to improve its legislation in order to accommodate the rapid transformation that is taking place in the sector. The Government is also improving the fiscal regime in order to maximise benefits, in a context of international competition and structural constraints in the country. Today, the contribution of the mineral sector to the state budget is 7%, promoting the development of other industries such as transport, logistics and other services. How are you increasing the fiscal space for children? A draft Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policy is being discussed pre‑ sently, for mandatory inclusion of CSR activities in all corporate contracts, related to education, health, and water. CSR interventions must be in line with development programmes. The Government must always be present to ensure that those groups of population that do not benefit directly or indirectly from the extractives are also captured in key interventions. This practice is already in place with the approval of a minimum of 2.75% (30 million MT/$1 million) from exploration revenue taxes that must return to the communities where the mining activities are taking place. What do we know about the impact of the industry on children? There is a challenge in assessing the impact of the extractive sector on children. The issue of child miners, particularly artisanal mining, is a case in point, and there is a need for additional research and evidence collection in order to design specific programs to address this issue.

“A child should be capable of saying that s/he is a child, and s/he is important and useful in taking decisions about everything in matters concerning him or her.”

GIANNA ANTJE NOVELA CHILD PARLIAMENTARIAN Gianna Antje Novela is the outgoing First Deputy Speaker of the Children’s Parliament, and a permanent member of the Maputo City Children’s Parliament. She first became active in her school’s Children’s Parliament in 2005. In 2010, she became a member of the Provincial and National Children’s Parliaments. She is 18.


What is your vision for Mozambique, 5-10 years from now? In 5-10 years time we will have a country that is relatively better than the current one. But this will only happen if we can all contribute towards making it happen. It will be a more inclusive country, in terms of matters concerning children, social, political and even cultural matters. We must all be involved if we are to make this future Mozambique a reality. How do past and current trends contribute to this? Fortunately, we can say today that civil society and the government now recognise that the opinion of children themselves, who suffer from the va‑ rious abuses and lack of respect for their rights, is something important. Civil society and the government should be congratulated for this. The forums of 11

reflection have helped a lot in the perception of matters concerning children, since they are a space open to the public. What will the situation of children be in 2025? Certainly children could see their rights better respected than they are today. Within the Children’s Parliament we have worked intensively to advance and protect children’s rights in the hope that in future we see them implemented in all sectors of government and beyond, as well as in civil society at large. We want children themselves to be the first to know their rights, so that they themselves will be able to demand respect for and compliance with these rights. We hope that children will be prioritised in decision making, because there are decisions which are taken and which do not benefit children, directly or indirectly. What do UNICEF and the country in general need to do in order to make the best possible contribution to child development today? In the next five years? In the next 10 years? Today the involvement of children within society is very important. I am re‑ ferring to active involvement, through the creation of mechanisms that allow children to be consulted in all matters that concern them, thus ceasing to regard children as incapable and who only have duties to study, to obey, to do their homework, etc. The adoption of and implementation of more effective laws would contribute positively, because children would feel protected by the law. These same laws should be known by children themselves, because today there are children who suffer various kinds of abuses and they don’t know that they are protected by the law. A more wide-ranging service of social assistance should be guaranteed, particularly for the most vulnerable strata of society, who are children, women and the elderly. Strategies should be drawn up to end the evils that affect children, such as the sexual abuse of minors, exploitation, begging, child labour and premature marriages. The creation of more spaces where children can give their opinions or make their voices heard would drive forward the way in which the day-to-day problems facing children in society have been dealt with – that is, in addi‑ tion to television debates and the children’s parliaments. The opening and maintenance of more public spaces for children’s entertainment in suburban neighbourhoods would bring back childhood aspirations, which seem to have died along with these places, and I believe this would reduce the number of children frequenting places of nocturnal entertainment that were designed for adults. By this I mean that children would be children for longer. It would also end the speculation that only children from wealthy backgrounds, and with good financial conditions, have a childhood. Including the children’s rights approach in education, in the schools, would greatly help children to know their rights, and would ensure that the matter is not treated superficially, as has been the case so far. For the future, we want children to be very knowledgeable about their rights, and that they shout out loud their longings, without fear of reprisal. Their opinions should be voluntary and original, that is, without being dictated or influenced by adults. A child should be capable of saying that he or she is a child, but that he/she is important and useful in taking decisions about every‑ thing in matters concerning him or her and children in general.

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UNICEF Mozambique

“We need to strengthen our capacity to detect and support the most vulnerable households.”

IOLANDA CINTURA MINISTER OF WOMEN AND SOCIAL ACTION Iolanda Maria Pedro Campos Cintura Seuane has been the Minister of Women and Social Action since 2010. Trained as a chemical engineer, she is also specialized in Economics and Oil Management, Gender and Energy, as well as Public Administration. She held several technical and managerial positions in the Ministry of Energy prior to becoming Minister of Women and Social Action.

What are the challenges and priorities delineated in the National Action Plan for Children, which is seated at the Ministry of Women and Social Action? Priorities and challenges in supporting the poorest families and children inclu‑ de education, with construction of schools and teacher training as priorities, and with school expansion, drop-out rates and quality of education as main challenges. In the health sector, access to health care and promotion are our priorities, with universal access to vaccination and decrease of mortality by preventable diseases remaining challenges. Water and sanitation are critical, as well, with access to safe water and sanitation for remote communities a real challenge. There is a need to strengthen the National Council of Child Rights (CNAC) to perform a meaningful role in guaranteeing children’s rights. We are also looking for more participation of children themselves. What about the priorities for the Ministry itself? The capacity to detect and support the most vulnerable households must be strengthened. The important role of community committees and INAS “per‑ manentes” to help identify the most vulnerable is part of the government’s strategy, but is still a challenging task due to the lack of human resources in the sector. A major priority of my ministry is to ensure that the most vulnerable children are taken care of.

“I have the vision of a country where families are living a decent life, under conditions that ensure healthy growth of their children, so that they grow up in an environment of affection and well-being.”

IVETE ALANE PERMANENT SECRETARY OF THE MINISTRY OF WOMEN’S AFFAIRS AND SOCIAL WELFARE

What is your vision for children in Mozambique in 5 or 10 years’ time? I have the vision of a country where families are living a decent life, under conditions that ensure healthy growth of their children, so that they grow up in an environment of affection and well-being, where their basic needs are met. Today, we have a country that is growing with families benefitting from improving living conditions. Clearly we still face challenges, such as chronic malnutrition among children under 5, but infant mortality rate has been declining. We need to continue to undertake greater efforts to reduce more significantly the rates of maternal mortality. But the problem of chronic malnutrition really represents an important challenge facing us, because of its impact on children’s future, since malnutrition causes development problems in early childhood, also affecting school performance. Would you indicate the fight against chronic malnutrition as a priority? This is one of the challenges, given prominence in the National Plan for Children formulated with participation from all the relevant parties, including UNICEF. We included the challenge in education of guaranteeing that chil‑ dren not only complete the basic level, but also have access to the following levels and complete them. Other areas relate to social and legal protection, juvenile justice, birth registration, often important for safeguarding the rights of children in divorce cases, etc. Then we also have the challenge of expanding


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inclusive education, to guarantee that all children with disabilities can enjoy the same rights to education as all other children. Twenty years after the end of the armed conflict, the period when we were under great pressure over the phenomena of street children, orphans, and so on, now we have the phenomena of “street families”, yesterday’s street children who now have families of their own - in the street. In what specific areas could UNICEF concentrate its future contribution? Perhaps UNICEF could give us its support in the reform process under way for social protection programmes, which include birth registration and juvenile justice, for alternative care, pre-school Education - very important for creating solid foundations for children to enter basic education - training of staff in behavioural change, as well as inclusive education. Here we still have very important challenges, including raising the awareness of parents and society in general, particularly knowing how to deal with the question of disability. Communities and families, for example, seem more prepared to deal with cases of physical disability, with loss of hearing or of vision, than with problems affecting the mind. There is also the phenomenon of child shelters, often set up merely to raise support from the state or from foreign humanitarian organisations. So we have established the principle of standardisation, with minimum standards that should be followed in the provision of social services, particularly in accommodating or instructing children. A recurrent complaint against MMAS is that it is reluctant to draw up a National Policy on Children, limiting itself to the National Plan, rather than a policy that would bind all stakeholders and oblige the State to allocate funds for implementation. We don’t think there is any shortage of instruments to guide all stakeholders in their actions in favour of children. Apart from the National Children’s Plan, which was drawn up with the involvement of civil society organisations, we have MMAS’s own Strategic Plan, the Multi-Sector Action Plan for the Reduction of Chronic Malnutrition in Mozambique, the Education Strategic Plan, and so on. So it doesn’t seem to us that we’re missing any new instru‑ ments to do our work.

“Our children in 2025 should have schools at their disposal where they learn more than how to read and write, but learn to be citizens.”

JOÃO DE FRANCO CARRILHO AGRICULTUR AL DEVELOPMENT SPECIALIST João de Franco Carrilho is a specialist in agricultural development, and has a Master’s Degree in Remote Sensing from the National Spatial Research Institute (INEP) of Brazil. He was Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (2000-2006), Chairperson of the National Institute of Rural Development (1979 - 1999), and has in recent years undertaken various duties, research activities and project assignments in land management, agro-business, food security, etc.

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What is your vision of Mozambique, 5-10 years from now? Mozambique is at a crossroads. It is possible to envision, in 10 years’ time, a country without hunger, a country without the food shortages it has now. The question of food security is very important. The country should be capable of feeding itself, because it has the potential for this. How do you see the past and the present contributing to this vision? We need to look at the countryside in a more systematic, more structured way. There is local knowledge and sufficient experience of governance to lead the country to food self-sufficiency. But for this we need a joint vision of all the factors that could intervene: areas of production, levels of production, productivity, marketing and agro-processing, access roads, more accessible bank credit, good quality seeds, value given to peasant knowledge, etc. Training and education programmes should be aligned with a vision of the country, in order to be relevant. In this aspect, our education system remains inadequate. We are now entering the era of the exploitation of natural resources. How do we make the benefits more lasting with an impact on the future? We are UNICEF Mozambique

talking about finite resources that will run out, so why not consider a sove‑ reign wealth fund, to manage the income derived from natural resources? With regards to a sovereign wealth fund, it is said that in Africa they only encourage more corruption, because they are captured by the elites in power, etc. Look at the case of Angola: the Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Fund is the son of the President of the Republic. Yes, this may be a problem, transparent management. But a better strategy could be for example to index the fund to a strategic social or economic sector, such as education, starting with the education of children. The fund would thus be limited to a single national strategic goal: to make education the starting point for development through better schools, mass training of highly qualified teachers, curriculum reforms, scientific research centres, etc. For example, students who complete mid-level education still do little to benefit themselves and society. They are not equipped to respond to the challenges of life, through self-sufficiency, etc. In recent years a good school network has been put together, even at higher level. But what is missing is to give it relevant content, of good quality, and always based on a vision of the country’s development. We have the necessary raw material. The decisive step is missing: to transform this raw material to the benefit of the communities and the country. What will the situation of Mozambican children be like in 2025? To have Mozambican children free of hunger seems an ambition that is achievable by 2025, and to have all children in school, receiving good quality education. When I speak of education, I am not referring only to scholastic education, the formal education received in a classroom. I mean education in a broader sense. This education starts from values, such as integrity, moral values. Every child learns more by example, imitating adults, particularly parents, rather than by receiving instruction on how they should or should not behave. This has been proven through many scientific studies. Parents, with express inclusion of the men, should possess attitudes that inspire children to behave as true citizens. Showing children that success depends on a lot of personal effort around honest work is one example. On its own, the school cannot achieve this. At school, we need pedagogues, not merely people who repeat to the children what comes from the books. A pedagogue is someone who knows how to transmit knowledge. The pedagogue knows how to discover wherein lies the challenge for a pupil, a child. Our schools lack pedagogues. Our children in 2025 should have schools at their disposal where they learn more than how to read and write, but learn to be citizens. The role of the parents should be very important, I insist on education by example, because this is the way that a child learns better, both the good things and bad. What should UNICEF do to better contribute to child development in the next 5-10 years? I insist on the allround training of people from a tender age to learn that a citizen has rights, but also duties. This implies a great effort to train really competent teachers. Education is the basis of everything, the prime condition to know how to live in the community, in the group.


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“It is very important to translate the various studies and plans that already exist into concrete results.”

JOAQUIM ALBERTO CHISSANO FORMER PRESIDENT OF MOZ AMBIQUE Joaquim Alberto Chissano, former President of the Republic of Mozambique (1986-2004) and Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the African Child Policy Forum. In 1974, when he was just 35, Joaquim Chissano took office as Prime Minister in the Transitional Government that would lead Mozambique to independence on 25 June 1975. Chissano was later appointed Foreign Minister, and elected President of the People’s Republic of Mozambique, successfully leading far-reaching socio-economic reforms, and opening the country to multi-party democracy and the market economy. Chissano also successfully led negotiations with Renamo, ending 16 years of war, and is regarded as the “Architect of Peace”. Throughout his career, Chissano has held high office in international organisations, including as chairperson of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (CPLP) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC). In July 2003 he was elected Chairperson of the African Union. Joaquim Chissano speaks five languages fluently, and is conversant in a further three.

What would be your vision for Mozambique 5-10 years from now? Joaquim Chissano: When I left government, I was convinced that poverty would continue to decline at the same pace as when I left. But this is not the current reality. On the contrary, there has even been a slowdown in this decline, such that we can now forecast that the number of people living in absolute poverty will be below 40% by around 2015. But our earlier forecast was that this figure would be around 30% in 2015, on the path to 20% in 2025. But we can reduce poverty in 2025 to 20%. The level of illiteracy among women is still very high. But social development will increase substantially, as will the Human Development Index, which is more difficult to increase. But it is taking off, despite the fact that Mozambique is still among the ten lowest countries in the Index. But I think that even the HDI will continue to grow, even if at a pace that may be slow. Access to clean drinking water is expanding. Infant and maternal mortality should also decline, indeed even as a result of better access to clean water. The expansion of the national electricity grid, which is reaching districts, is very important, because it has an impact on the provision of health services (conservation of vaccines and medicines in the health centres, etc.) and on education because they can now give classes at night. The development of the capacity of the State is also very important and there will be greater capacity to guarantee greater access to health and education. The HIV/AIDS pandemic will be under control in 10 years’ time, but we still have to step up the work of fighting it. Malaria can also be reduced, since it continues to have a great impact on infant mortality and on the mortality of people of all ages. Mr President, how would you see Mozambican children in 2025? Children should be free from malnutrition. This should be reduced to the mini‑ mum, with satisfactory access to food. This means that we should guarantee a significant improvement in the quality of children’s human development. We should also have children free from violence, which should be reduced to the minimum, including sexual abuse, child labour and premature marriages. We must also ensure that children are better protected by the law. The law should be applied correctly and should be updated at each phase of problems, in order to be more efficient. The law should protect children and the most vulnerable households, such as those vulnerable to conflicts, natural disasters, etc. In education, it is necessary to guarantee the transition to and conclusion of secondary education, with the capacity to reach university and technical and professional education. The above mentioned level of education should be prepared to accommodate all children who complete primary education. Mr President, what are the facts of the past and present on which you base yourself to formulate this vision of Mozambique on the next 10 years? Looking at the past, we see that we had a war that destroyed the country over 16 years. In 1992 we had a foreign debt which amounted to 200% of our GDP, and poverty affected 80% of the population, with an inflation rate of 50%. We achieved peace, and immediately afterwards, we drew up an exit plan, to lift up the country. It included reconstructing infrastructure and the social fabric, fighting against poverty, and laying the bases for development. There were many transformations. We began the inclusion of everyone in all the processes, everyone was involved. In a short time, we recorded annual growth rates of over 10%. Our foreign debt fell to less than 35% of GDP, and the poverty indices fell by 10% from 1992 to 1997. GDP grew at two digits, and inflation fell to one digit. We introduced the system of multi-party democracy, we kept the peace, and we achieved the total pardon of our

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UNICEF Mozambique

foreign debt. This experience shows that it is possible to grow rapidly and sustainably. Nowadays, we have the beginning of the exploitation of the natural resources, which can encourage development. This, together with good governance, forms a firm basis, a great opportunity. While considering all these premises of sustainable development that you present, there must also be risk factors, and precautions should be taken against them. There is always a factor which should be taken care of: good governance. The advances we achieved immediately after the end of the war were ba‑ sed on good governance and the preservation of peace. And now, we have a new factor: population growth. We must pay attention to demographic growth and check whether the rate of population growth is not higher than the economic growth. The government and all of society should be attentive to this phenomenon. What should we do to contribute to the development of Mozambican children, in the next 5 to 10 years? I’m going to speak in my capacity as Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of The African Child Policy Forum (ACPF), and according to its Declarationn on Children in Africa and the post-2015 Development Agenda that was adopted in 2013, the inclusive and sustainable development envisaged for Africa in the near future should put children at its centre. The Declaration laid down a series of fundamental areas to which governments, companies and organisations, including international organisations such as UNICEF, NGOs, etc. should give priority, including guaranteeing the gradual achievement of the rights of each child, without any discrimination based on age, disability or anything else, the elimination of malnutrition, particularly stunting, elimination of preventable child deaths, universal access to quality primary education and a secure transition to secondary education for all children. It is not enough to look just at primary education, because the child will grow and have no access to employment. We also included preparing adolescents with adequate knowledge and skills that allow them to protect themselves from reproductive health risks, such as HIV and AIDS, the ban and elimination of all forms of abuse and violence against children, through really effective child protection systems, including juvenile justice systems, and registration of children at birth, which guarantees every child its rights. It is very important to translate the various studies and plans that already exist into concrete results.

“In the next 10 years we are still going to have a country in transition, characterized in the complexity that it is, with real poverty and virtual wealth coinciding in the same person.”

JOSE ÓSCAR MONTEIRO FOR MER MINISTER Jose Óscar Monteiro, Academic. Trained in Law and with a Master’s Degree in African Studies from the University of Paris I (Panthéon-Sorbonne), Professor Monteiro has taught at the Faculty of Law of the Eduardo Mondlane University, where he developed the Public Administration course. He was also a Visiting Professor at the Faculty of Public Management and Development at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. Monteiro has held various ministerial positions, incluOur children in 2025

What is your vision of Mozambique, 5-10 years from now? It’s clear that in the next 10 years, the country is still going to be in transition. And for now we have to have two paths here. One path, which is the path of the possible. The path of the possible is not determined by imitating or repeating what others are doing. It begins with us carrying on, without stopping, while we are rethinking, in strategic terms, without prejudice to continuing current actions, but to think about what education is for children, what message we want to transmit, and not to start by defining the message we want to send to children, by tradition, by routines and by universalism, and only later making a reflection on our country. And it’s not just the idea of teaching in the national languages, because it still is an adaptation of the imported model. It’s very important to learn the forms of knowledge in our society and eventually improve on them by introducing new forms. I think that the education system 17

ding as Minister of Information, Minister of State in the Presidency of the Republic, and Minister of State Administration, the latter combined with the post of Governor of Gaza Province. He has held other strategic duties, both in Mozambican public administration, and in academia, as well as been Special Advisor to the Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for the peace process in Mozambique.

has been an enormous waste. I am fully convinced of this. Knowledge exists in society and we are ignoring this. I think that Mozambique can be a prospe‑ rous country, but we should distribute wealth fairly. And it is clear that in the next 10 years we are still going to have a country in transition, characterised in the complexity that it is, with real poverty and virtual wealth coinciding in the same person. And the more resources are announced, the more this gap - a sort of dual personality – becomes apparent. I would say that the wisdom of politicians lies in recognising this and knowing how to manage it. It’s the example of Brazil: major social reforms were undertaken, and new needs were awakened. People were seeing reality from a window that was low down. You raised the level of the window and people begin seeing a broader horizon. I don’t think there are solutions and I know no precedents. But for any message, we have to use mechanisms at the level of the people targeted. If I am communicating with young people, I must use means that are at their level. There is great competition for people’s attention, even that of children and adolescents. So a “heavy” message won’t get through. And what is the difficulty you’re going to have here? It’s that we – traditionally those who think about children’s problems are adults. But paradoxically although children are not capable of thinking about policies and defining programmes, they are high consumers of these very programmes. Perhaps the solution is to identify, among young people, those who are capable of speaking with other young people, a child speaking with child. The best pedagogy comes from one’s colleagues, what we call “peer pressure”. What could UNICEF do as its focus? I’ll give you a little example: UNICEF heading a small programme on “Good Management of Bathrooms” in schools. The real objective is not the bathrooms, but the idea of cleanliness, respect for the public good, citizenship, respect for others: to leave the bathroom in the same condition as you would like to find it. It’s a very simple example, but at the same time it carries many values. It’s measurable. You can create encouragement mechanisms, prizes for schools, for classes. And when the prize is granted, you speak, you interpret what this work means, praising or criticising. At heart I am concentrating on schools. But I should say there is also the neighbourhood where people live: it is necessary to reserve certain places for socialisation in the neighbourhoods, you can’t go into people’s houses, but you can create common spaces that serve as a stage. In this time of individualism we need to know how to associate public spirit with advantage. The most important thing is public spirit. We have to find the most intelligent forms possible. Then we have the problem of training. I think that UNICEF has to be the bea‑ rer of how to teach effectively, taking into account the ways of teaching and learning locally: indigenous knowledge. And here I shall raise more questions than give answers: what is knowledge in general, and what is knowledge in Mozambican society? In short: I would place my ideas within this framework: methodologies, public spirit, training.

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UNICEF Mozambique

“We are in a situation where it is necessary to have firm resources, to provide continuity, in a more consolidated form, not just with natural resources, but fundamentally also with international support.”

LUÍSA DIAS DIOGO FORMER PRIME MINISTER Luísa Dias Diogo, former Mozambican Prime Minister (2004 - 2010) and Planning and Finance Minister, is one of the most distinguished Mozambican political figures of the past 15 years. She has a Licentiate in Economics from Maputo’s Eduardo Mondlane University, and a Master’s Degree in Financial Economics from the University of London. She was recognised by Time Magazine as one of the 100 most influential figures in the world due to her active participation in post-war national reconstruction and the economic and social transformations of the country.

What is your vision for Mozambique in 2025? I think that Mozambique, in 2018, 2025, will be a country that is finally taking steps to consolidate all the instruments of the strategies drawn up so far. That’s why it will be a crucial time, in which the country will appear as a nation with a prospect of success, a country at point zero, at the point of the turn towards development. Right now we are in a situation where it is necessary to have firm resources, to provide continuity, now in a more consolidated form, possible not just with natural resources, but fundamentally also with international support, based on the global development agenda, and the agenda determined by the country as a whole, within the concert of nations. I see Mozambique in 5, 10 years from now as a country setting off solidly towards more positive indicators as regards poverty, as regards the Human Development Index, as regards literacy, including women’s literacy, which is very important, with regard to the absorption of technology, and everything which indicates that the country is advancing towards sustainable develop‑ ment. 2025 will be a critical year, a turning point. What lessons must we learn for the future? Mozambique always invested heavily in education, providing resources which always corresponded to 17 to 20% of the state budget, and this culture of investing in children, in education, in professionalization, and now increasingly in vocational training, all this forms the basis of our past. And so this past is going to impose itself on the future of the country. Similarly with the invest‑ ments in mother and child health. The presidential initiatives in this area, in which UNICEF played a very important role, along with the WHO, are seeds we sowed, the fruits of which will now emerge in the shape of reductions in infant and maternal mortality. The indicators will show this in a more con‑ sistent fashion 5 or 6 years from now. In infrastructure, major construction that is now beginning will influence this strategy in the future, also driving public-private partnerships. And we have to maintain all this. We cannot allow distractions that take the education indicators to less than 20%, or the health indicators to less than 14% of the state budget, or which reduce investment in agriculture to less than 10%. Because when we talk about agriculture, we are talking about strengthening children’s nutritional standards. And this type of distraction only happens when we don’t have sentinels, and UNICEF is one of these sentinels. These figures in the state budget are extremely important, to ensure that the past is a strong reference point to anchor this vision of a country at a turning point on the path to development. What picture can we have of Mozambican children in 2025? Children are going to be our barometer. If we are successful, this will be visible through them. Starting with mother and child health, the indicators of mortality among children under 1 will show if we really are making progress. School attendance, nutrition, these will show us whether we are doing well or not. In 2025 I see an illiteracy rate, including among adults, of probably below 40%. The rate among children will likely be much lower than among adults, who are now targets of a great literacy and adult education offensive, particularly among women. But, if we maintain the current levels of atten‑ tion, then I see children developing in an increasingly healthy environment. UNICEF should continue to act as our sentinel in regard to the allocation of funds and in relation to strategies. It’s fundamental that UNICEF continue to be the reservoir of all pertinent world knowledge, that it seeks out our local knowledge, expertise, and the best cadres, so that they can draw up country development strategies, disseminate good practices and lessons learnt here and there, to feed the global strategy towards children. I see in 2025 children


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who are not yet those of our dreams, but are certainly much better off than the children we have now. What precautions should Mozambique take to guarantee that the vision you have formulated becomes a reality? The country has to grow in an inclusive manner. And we must have the cou‑ rage to continue to push for this agenda of inclusion. Why? Because this is an eminently young nation. About 45 per cent of the inhabitants constitute the active population. And about 57% of the entire population is the dependent population, including the elderly, unemployed and children. This is not solved by giving money to people. It isn’t solved only with investment in education or health. It is solved by making sure investments are in place so each one of these people can create their own income. And this implies that they should be trained and prepared to create their own income. All development policies should be undertaken in such a way so as to help people make the transition from a situation of dependence to self-sufficiency. This implies that, at national and global level, there should be inclusive development agendas, which influence local thought, and at local level there should be the necessary stimuli so that the endogenous thinking of Mozambicans brings solutions, so that these solutions are applicable and adjusted to our reality. So the money from the large projects must not only go as income for the foreign investors, but it must be income in which Mozambicans can share, a large slice of this income must be channelled to the state budget, so that there is growth from within to outside, and that the initial investment is multiplied, replicated. Then we can go forward, with greater security, all together, as a united country. What about setting up a Sovereign Wealth Fund? I think it’s relevant and urgent. It’s here that the United Nations has a great responsibility: to make knowledge circulate, positive and negative experien‑ ces. We have the positive experience of Norway, which is building up large reserves from its oil. And Norway is already a country with very high levels of human development, and there are so few Norwegians that, with what they have, they could comfortably continue their lives. There are a lot of us. We greatly need the income from these resources, which are not yet available, we still need a lot of access to technology, and large scale investments in human resources. So these reserves in a Sovereign Fund are fundamental. They make it possible for us to control the levels of corruption. They make us remember that these resources will be exhausted so we need to save for the future. It leads us to rational spending policies, which are intelligent and mature, without emotions, with calm. A Sovereign Fund should be established as soon as the financial indicators allow. So the government of the day, the parliament of the day, and civil society - which intervenes increasingly with information and communication technologies encouraging access to know‑ ledge, debates of a quality we did not have previously, the social networks, etc - all the stakeholders have the responsibility, once indicators show that the revenue from natural resources has reached x percent of GDP – and United Nations agencies can do this with security, in an independent and neutral manner – then stakeholders should demand that we keep part it for the future. In your view, what would be the main areas on which UNICEF should focus its contribution? I would divide it into the global and national component. In the global com‑ ponent, we need to maintain the capacity of collecting and processing the knowledge of countries, through the people and expertise that exists there, and bring it to contribute to the formulation of local strategies, in the area of children and in other areas of knowledge. Secondly, UNICEF should conti‑ nue to monitor the major policies and strategies in the area of children. And finally: to play that role of sentinel, to pay attention to what we are doing and prevent us from becoming distracted. UNICEF should continue to be present in our countries, to be that symbol that commands respect from everyone, in a way that is very mild and simple, but firm and which influences even the agenda of the other agendas, because the future, the continuity of nations is implicated in the work of UNICEF. The preparation of our very future is at stake. I don’t see any need for great “revolutions” in the areas of UNICEF’s contribution in Mozambique. I think UNICEF should continue and 20

UNICEF Mozambique

consolidate, although organisations always like to create great novelties, I think that UNICEF in Mozambique should consolidate its work. I would say perhaps it should continue to develop the programmes I regard as parallel or complementary, for the good of children. This is the case, for example, with all forms of violence against children or any situation which could hinder the healthy growth of children.

“...economic development is not possible without a specific programme on poverty reduction.”

MANUEL CHANG MINISTER OF FINANCE Manuel Chang was appointed Minister of Finance of Mozambique in 2005. Previous posts include Vice Minister of Planning and Finance, National Director of the Treasury, and National Director of Budget. He has served as the Chairman of the General Assembly of the Commercial Bank of Mozambique and the Chairman of the Auditor Council of the Bank of Mozambique.

What are the policy choices made by the Ministry of Finance that relate to children? The Government recognizes that economic development is not possible without a specific programme on poverty reduction. We prioritise the social sectors, mainly Education and Health. We are investing in improving access to education and also in neonatal and maternal health. We need to fulfil all children’s rights, but with budget limitations, we need to prioritise around the fundamentals such as education and health. Infrastructure is one of the key cross-cutting sectors that include water, electricity, ports, railways, and roads. We are also pushing for more investment in agriculture, fisheries, tourism, energy and natural resources. We are working hard to ensure equi‑ table investment in human capital. We are defining criteria to decentralize the budget to the provinces, districts, and municipalities, based on the size of the population. We clearly need to strengthen this approach and include an equity and vulnerability lens.

“To increase birth registration, we need to overcome prevailing cultural barriers and social norms.”

MARIA BENVINDA LEVI MINISTER OF JUSTICE Maria Benvinda Delfina Levi was appointed Minister of Justice in 2008. She has a degree in Law and has held many administrative and managerial positions related to judiciary. She is member of the Mozambican Association of Women in the Judiciary and of the Commonwealth Magistrates and Judges Association.

Birth registration is of strategic importance to the Ministry of Justice, what are the challenges that remain? To increase birth registration, we need to overcome prevailing cultural barriers and social norms, lack of parents’ knowledge about the importance of birth registration and cases of double registration. It is important for children to be registered before the age of 9 months, as it is during this period that mothers usually take their children to health units or hospitals for weight control and vaccination. The Ministry of Health’s support has been invaluable in including birth registration during our national health weeks. This has helped clear the backlog. What about children in conflict with the law? Parents and families have an important role to play in this area, and they need all the support they can get. We also need to address the specific needs of children below 16 and those between 16 and 21. We need to expand commu‑ nity services and other alternative measures to detention. The Government also needs to have a rehabilitation centre for children aged 16-21 who have committed serious offenses.


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“...there is a need to tackle root causes of child labour such as household vulnerability, poverty, HIV/AIDS and access to education.”

MARIA HELENA TAIPO MINISTER OF L ABOUR Maria Helena Taipo is Minister of Labour since 2005. She has a degree in Education Science, Education Leadership and Management, and is a teacher by profession. She has been a member of the ILO Governing Board and Chairperson of the SADC Committee for Ministers of Labour and Social Action.

How would you describe the Ministry’s work around child labour? Child labour is a real and critical problem in Mozambique, and exists mainly in informal commerce and trading, mining and farming. Cross-border traffi‑ cking of children and child labour in border towns are the worst forms of child labour we have today. As this is a cross-cutting problem, solving it requires an integrated approach from various stakeholders, thus the need for a natio‑ nal plan of action against child labour with clear strategies. This is currently under development under leadership of the Ministry of Labour. To prevent and fight child labour there is a need to tackle root causes of child labour such as household vulnerability, poverty, HIV/AIDS and access to education. We need to conduct an assessment to have a clear overview and an accurate picture of the problem in terms of figures, percentage and causes. Currently, a national list of hazardous work is being drafted as a means to ensure clarity on which forms of child work Mozambique considers acceptable taking into account cultural aspects, such as apprenticeship or household chores, and which are considered unacceptable due to their exploitative nature, such as hazardous work for example.

“It is not enough to bring programmes, it is necessary to provide instruments for thought, instruments for us to think correctly about our country.”

MARIO FERNANDES DA GRAÇA MACHUNGO FORMER PRIME MINISTER Mario Fernandes da Graça Machungo was Prime Minister of Mozambique from 1986 to 1994. He was also the Minister of Industry and Trade and the Minister of Agriculture, and is now the Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the International Bank of Mozambique. Dr. Machungo has also been the Director of the Faculty of Economics in Lourenço Marques University. He has a Licentiate in Economics from the Technical University of Lisbon.

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What is your vision of Mozambique 5 - 10 years from now? In the current framework, if Mozambique is well managed, it is very likely that in 2025, it could have a Gross Internal Product of about $60 billion. There are studies made by some specialists which show this, and indicate a Per Capita Gross Internal Product of about $2,100. Mozambique is very delayed in terms of development, when compared with its neighbours. But we do indeed have to be ambitious. This is a predictable scenario, it’s not utopian. It will be enough for the country to remain stable: political stability, macro-economic stability, etc. If we reach 2025 with a GDP of about $60 billion, Mozambique will be taking the path of a country with a medium-sized economy. Conditions exist for this to happen and the first is really this awakening of our natural resources. But other countries might at any moment discover gas, etc, and the Mozambican gas can lose its current commercial value. When one thinks of taking the largest possible advantages from natural resources like this, one must consider that they are finite. Here we enter upon another natural resource that Mozambique has and one that is inexhaustible, and that’s its geostrategic position. This strategic asset could really lead Mozambique to attain these levels of growth. Mozambique shares its borders with countries that possess valuable raw materials and whose exit to the sea is precisely Mozambique. This geostrategic position of Mozambique, well exploited with our neighbours, represents an enormous development potential: it is no accident that we created SADC. We have 3,000 kms of coastline. The largest deep water port in this part of Africa is Nacala. Nacala could be a very strategic port for shipping from the whole eastern area to the South Atlantic, in a context where the world economy is shifting from the North Atlantic to the UNICEF Mozambique

South Atlantic, and from the South Atlantic to Asia. Furthermore, the amount of arable land we have for agriculture can guarantee our food security. Then we can supply others, too. We have great hydro-power potential that can produce 12,000 Megawatts. The region needs energy, a lot of it. These are assets, not just for us, but for the region. Another point is tourism: we have the 3,000 km of coastline, we have the potential for safari tourism, etc. In short, my vision is one of optimism, if we have clear policies. Everything depends on us. And in this optimistic vision what would be the main precautions to take into account? No vision can be carried out without good planning, good foresight, estab‑ lishing priorities, etc. Money is also needed and human resources, competent technical staff. Without this, we could have all these resources and remain poor. All this is done with people who think about their country in a strategic way. Naturally, we also have to rely on the knowledge that exists in the world, our human capital is fundamental. What about a sovereign wealth fund to save natural resources revenue for the future? The countries who have had Sovereign Funds, Norway, for example, are de‑ veloped countries who have already solved great basic problems of society: education, health, housing, etc. But we have other countries, such as East Timor, which has also created a Sovereign Fund. However, they included a safeguard to solve the present problems of the population. The problem is how to solve the burning current problems, while also thinking of the future. In the entire vision of development for Mozambique that you are formulating, in what way could the United Nations System contribute better? “Don’t give me fish, teach me how to fish”. It is not enough to bring program‑ mes, etc., it is necessary to provide instruments for thought, instruments for us to think correctly about our country. It is necessary to train Mozambicans to create models for the development of their own country, to build their capacity. What about the situation of children in Mozambique? In the long term, the objective should be to give all Mozambicans a basic edu‑ cation of nine or 10 years, which prepares them for continuing their studies, and for successfully entering the labour market and adult life. What is being done? The objectives, the strategies, it’s all written down. We have to move from discourse to implementation. We have the problem of disabled children. A great, redoubled strategy is needed to deal with this question, and see how to respond to the need to include these children in the education system, so that they do not remain on the margins of society. And pre-primary education, where the pyramid is broadest, how to guarantee a solid education, from the base upwards? This doesn’t need studies: they’ve already been made. The problem is to help the country implement its policies, not only the State but all of society. And this implies a very great commitment between UNICEF and state institutions. We can advance to very concrete strategies. Considering your long experience, as a senior manager and government leader for many years, there is always a discrepancy between what is planned, the policies and strategies, and what is achieved, sometimes even deviations. What could be the cause of this? This is in fact due to bad governance. A government, an organisation or company that attributes goals to itself and does not carry them out, is irres‑ ponsible. Accountability is precisely the great problem.


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“There is a lot of red tape. Many studies are made that recommend actions that are not put into practice: there is no visible effectiveness of the government.”

MÁXIMO DIAS COMMIT TEE OF COUNSELLORS OF AGENDA 2025 Máximo Dias, lawyer, member of the Committee of Counsellors of Agenda 2025, has a long career as a lawyer and in politics, and is founder of the Mozambican Nationalist Movement (MONAMO). In 1999, he was elected as deputy to the Assembly of the Republic, for the Renamo/ Electoral Union Coalition.

What is your vision of Mozambique, 5-10 years from now? As a Mozambican who feels and suffers for the well-being of Mozambican society, I feel happy at some successes, but our current situation is very delicate. Human security has been lost: businessmen are kidnapped, the security of the state itself is threatened internally. It’s true there are prospects for the country undergoing an economic boom, but unfortunately this growth, in 5 to 10 years’ time, will come only from the gas in northern Mozambique. However, even the gas companies are a little destabilised. A national aware‑ ness of everybody, ministers and all members of the government, is needed to think about how to solve these problems rapidly. There is a lot of red tape. Many studies are made that recommend actions that are not put into practice: there is no visible effectiveness of the government. How do you see the vision you formulate from the perspective of Mozambican children in 2025? I see Mozambican children from the perspective of a country in a delicate economic situation: the government is not able to guarantee the desirable support. There are organisations of citizens, such as the one chaired by Graça Machel, and even the wife of the President of the Republic, that are trying to do something for children, but it is insignificant for the existing needs. Parents are not able to guarantee at least one hot meal a day to their children. The schools being built, many of them do not have minimum conditions for the children to study, many do not even have desks, even in the outskirts of Maputo City. Teachers have to be better paid, better prepared, more qualified. Efforts must be made to guarantee them good training, minimum housing conditions. More crèches are needed for our children. Only the middle class, that is still very small, can afford to pay 250 to 300 dollars a month. The training of our children cannot be seen merely in terms of academic training, but also moral and social training. Values have collapsed. The churches themselves, which used to be centres of moral training, have also declined greatly. And so the future I see for Mozambican children is still very difficult. What should UNICEF do? We have on our borders the crisis of trafficking in minors, for child labour. In countries such as Mozambique, or very poor regions of India, it is the parents themselves, pressured by poverty, who hand over the children. We have to discuss this matter carefully, because we cannot totally condemn child labour. There is child labour that prejudices the growth of the child, but there is also child labour that supports the family. Children can do this as long as it does not damage their development, and does not hinder the normal school timetable.

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UNICEF Mozambique

“A gulf is opening between those who have and those who don’t. This could be a time bomb.”

NARCISO MATOS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE COMMUNIT Y DEVELOPMENT FOUNDATION Narciso Matos, Executive Director of the Community Development Foundation (FDC), a Mozambican civil society organisation for the advancement of development, democracy and social justice. He has a doctor’s degree in organic chemistry from the University of Humboldt, Germany, and a licentiate degree in science from the Eduardo Mondlane University, Mozambique, where he later occupied several high-level academic and administrative posts. From 1996 to 2000, he was Secretary-General of the Association of African Universities, in Accra, Ghana, and was a member of the Group of Advisors on Higher Education for the Secretary-General of UNESCO. Professor Matos has also been a deputy in the Mozambican National Assembly, and from 2000 to 2007, director of the International Development Programme of the Carnegie Foundation in New York.

What is your vision for Mozambique, 5-10 years from now? This question would have been easy to answer before the emergence of the projects to exploit mineral and energy resources. I think that, once again, we are in a period of great choices. We have the opportunity to make correct choices because, if we take into account the resources which are now be‑ ginning to be exploited. They can keep us on the path of economic growth, but we could easily skid off the road. I see that there are opportunities for us to continue to grow just as we have been growing since the signing of the General Peace Agreement. The next two, three years will be determinant. And on what matters should these choices be made? What could happen is what is happening in other countries under similar con‑ ditions: at the same time as growth is recorded, failure to improve the living conditions of the majority also grows, in terms of social inclusion. This means a gulf is opening between those who have and those who don’t. This could be a time bomb. Equity at the overall level in the country and at regional level is one of the great challenges facing us. There are small indicators of social tensions, caused by living conditions that are very difficult for many people. And we have to recognise that this exists and to know how to manage this in a healthy manner. But if we don’t, then we may have social explosions. But I see a growing voice of forces that are not just from the government. There are voices we hear from society, public opinion in the mass media, organised groups of citizens, etc. It seems to me that the space of freedom is expanding and this gives me certain comfort. How would you see Mozambican children in 2025? Frankly, I don’t see dramatic changes. Over the next five years any substantive changes are still less probable than in ten years. We have elections in 2013, more elections in 2014. In 2015 the new government takes office, and before you know it, five years have passed. It will be a period of managing transitions. In terms of children, what should we be focusing on? I think that education is the liberating force. And in the next five to ten years, I see that the great challenge is to guarantee quality in education. Expanding access, yes, but the children should have access to an education that gives them more than the basics in life, such as speaking, reading, and counting. On a 10-year horizon, I think a challenge would be to extend what has already been achieved at primary level to secondary level. The high rates of access we see now are for first level primary education. In the secondary level, there is a dramatic fall. So what happens to these children who disappear from school from this point? They disappear from technical and professional education. They disappear from learning life skills. Also, there is the question of regional inequalities. It could contribute to stability if we really begin to push Nampula and Zambezia provinces forward, above all when we consider that the natural resources are located there. It is going to be very difficult to maintain the discourse of unity when a child in Maputo, on average, has 20 times more opportunities than a child in Zambezia. Education and health efforts have to be undertaken with a certain positive discrimination, in a rational manner. Speaking of the real benefits for communities of the natural resources being exploited, there is a debate about a sovereign wealth fund. Some propose that a way of guaranteeing that such a fund produces lasting results would be to channel it to education and science. What do you think of this? Since these are finite resources, then what is our strategy for the future? Do we want to spend everything without thinking about tomorrow? Or, even if


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there are immediate needs, do we want to preserve some of them for the future? To me it seems to make sense to keep a little for tomorrow. I favour a plan that safeguards the needs of future generations.

“In 10 years, Mozambique could be advancing on its own feet, feeding itself, and no longer experiencing hunger. It is possible for Mozambique to achieve this.”

PAULINA CHIZIANE AUTHOR Paulina Chiziane, Mozambican author, began her literary career in 1984, with stories published in the Mozambican press. With her first book, Balada de Amor ao Vento (1990), she became the first Mozambican woman to publish a novel. She has since published several novels.

What is your vision of Mozambique, 5-10 years from now? In principle, my vision of Mozambique in the coming period is not positive. I am not optimistic about our future. The political climate of the country is not clear. This year we have had shootings, innocent people were killed. People don’t understand what the politicians want for the country. So it’s difficult for me to formulate a vision of the future. Apart from the disturbed political climate, corruption remains at very high levels. In 10 years Mozambique could be advancing on its own feet, feeding itself, and no longer experiencing hunger. It is possible for Mozambique to achieve this. What aspects of the past and the present lead you to think that Mozambique can reach this target of a country without hunger? We have had 20 years of peace, without war. The country has grown a little and can grow more. The people should be left in peace, to work in peace, to travel, to pursue their business. Children and young people should have the opportunity to develop, to study, to have good schools with properly trained teachers. Teachers should also be well motivated. There’s talk of natural resources, but whose hands are they in? Are we all going to benefit from these natural resources? Will these resources not bring us more problems rather than solutions to the problems we already have? But it’s our wealth, which should be exploited carefully and distributed to our benefit, all of us. We can do away with hunger in 10 years in Mozambique. What will the situation of Mozambican children be like in 2025? If we manage to do away with hunger, then we will no longer have these malnourished children we see in the countryside, in the cities. You know, a malnourished child doesn’t have much chance of developing its potential. Because the child’s intellect grows atrophied, its school performance, the ability to understand the materials taught in school is very low. So children need to be fed properly. I don’t know if what we are teaching children is cor‑ rect for the child to grow up with valid knowledge. Schools teach the same things to children from the entire country, but children, adolescents, live in different realities. They learn things that are important and relevant to them, through their parents, and communities. So the child knows many things, learnt from his own reality, but when he reaches the school where they teach things that are different from his reality, he becomes “ignorant” and “illiterate” and fails. I travel a lot across the country, and I feel this. In Niassa for example, children, adolescents, speak with certainty about who Mataka was, his heroism, and achievements in their context. How to ensure that this is reflected in the books of each region and is not uniform? What should UNICEF do to improve child development in the next 5 - 10 years? I’m insisting on the question of hunger. No child can concentrate on studying if he is hungry. I travel a lot through the provinces and what is happening with premature marriages is really very repulsive. In Cabo Delgado province, in Nampula, 10-year old children are handed over to adult men. In Inhambane, for example, where it is the practice to resort to witch-doctors when people have problems, this service is paid for with girls, handed over to the witch-doctor

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UNICEF Mozambique

as spouses. There is also a certain trafficking of minors from the countryside to Maputo City. Well-off people go to the countryside to convince their poor relatives to send their young daughters to come and “play” with their babies in Maputo. But in fact they use them as nannies, for free. These girls miss school, they grow up illiterate.

“We are now at a stage of complete transformation, which should be handled very carefully, so that the final results really are ones of progress.”

TEREZINHA DA SILVA NATIONAL COORDINATOR AT WOMEN AND L AW IN SOUTHERN AFRICA Terezinha da Silva, National Coordinator at Women and Law in Southern Africa (WLSA), a regional women’s rights NGO. With a Master’s Degree in Social Policies and Planning from the London School of Economics and Political Science, UK, Da Silva has worked as a gender specialist since 1985. She is a board member of several organisations working in community development, social studies, children, women’s affairs and gender, and has extensive experience working with and advising the Ministries of Health and of Social Welfare. She has been a social researcher since 1978, in areas related to public policies, gender and development, integrity in the judiciary, and voluntary work. She retired as a public servant after 35 years of service to the state.

What is your vision of Mozambique, 5-10 years from now? The result or the direction in which this transformation will take the country is, to a large extent, still unknown. But I think the conditions exist for us to see a future of great progress for Mozambique, from the economic point of view. But we are now really at a stage of complete transformation, which should be handled very carefully, so that the final results really are ones of progress. Do you think that Mozambique could still go back to war? I don’t know. I would dearly like to be more optimistic, but there are serious challenges ahead. It is not just the question of war. There are questions of governance, corruption, nepotism, lack of security in general. How do you see the past and the present contributing to this vision? Peace is not yet secure. Our stability is still fragile. Many things could still happen. Look at what we are seeing nowadays in Spain, for example: gains which had been made in many social areas, particularly in women’s development, are being liquidated. Peace in Mozambique still needs to be consolidated and I am really very concerned at the situation experienced recently, problems of security. Se‑ condly we have the problem of the management of natural resources. We ask ourselves whether these resources are going to be a blessing or a curse. Look at the problems we have with resettlement. It seems that many people are moved from here to there without any guarantees of a stable life, with problems of compensation, etc. So we have all these concerns. What will the situation of Mozambican children be like in 2025? I would greatly like to imagine our children living in a safe and healthy envi‑ ronment. A particular issue that I would like is for the civil registration of all children to be guaranteed, with access to an identity card. Education and health are other areas where I would like to see children’s rights guaranteed. In education, for example, quality should be substantially improved, with the introduction of new programmatic content, such as respect for human rights. Really, respect for human rights should be the basis of all policies. The quality of children’s health should also be greatly improved. I am thinking particularly about questions of nutrition. A malnourished child is unable to experience healthy growth. The potential for intelligence does not develop, and the child grows up condemned. What should UNICEF do to best contribute to child development in 5-10 years? A child without documents is a child without rights. UNICEF should do more in this area. A further question which greatly concerns us is premature mar‑ riages: forced marriages. Mozambique occupies the 7th worst position for forced marriages. We have 11-year old girls suffering from obstetric fistulas. A child like this has her entire future ruined. That’s why we have to speak about education programmes based on human rights. This should be linked to good quality education with a gender perspective. Another suggestion I would like to make: it seems to me that UNICEF had programmes to provide food supplements in schools in very poor areas. This is extremely important, but I don’t know if it still continues.


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