[{"bbox": [96, 136, 1134, 348], "category": "Text", "text": "disasters, as well as forced displacement. Therefore, malnutrition continues to be a driver of poverty and inequality, with the gravest impacts on young children. As of April 2022, approximately 13 per cent of the population is affected by acute food insecurity⁹, while 38 per cent¹⁰ of children under 5 years old suffer from chronic malnutrition. With now some 31 million habitants (whose 46.6 per cent is under 15 years old and 70 per cent live and work in rural areas) and one of the highest fertility rate¹¹ in the continent, if the current rate of decline in the number of stunted children is maintained at 1.46 per cent (2021)¹², then nearly 2 million children will still be stunted in 2025 in Mozambique. This is well over the World Health Assembly targets¹³, and by extension, over the target of the principal indicator for SDG2."}, {"bbox": [96, 359, 1134, 519], "category": "Text", "text": "**Good nutrition is a basic human right** and malnutrition (in all of its forms) is a significant risk factor for child mortality, and it seriously impairs the physical and cognitive development of children. Particularly, stunting in Mozambique massively hampers the development of the country both in human and economic terms¹⁴, as it traps people into a lifelong cycle of illness, underdevelopment, poverty and inequality. Evidence shows that it leads to reduced education outcomes and productive capacities, and to increased chances of life long health problems (including non-communicable diseases) thereby having long term detrimental impacts on society at large."}, {"bbox": [96, 531, 1134, 718], "category": "Text", "text": "Against this background, investing in ‘human capital development’ remains essential¹⁵ for the EU in order to ‘support Mozambique’s transformation through economic, social and political inclusion and contribute to long term inclusive development’ (overall objective of the MIP 2021-2027). This Action intends to contribute to **Priority 2 ‘Growing Youth’ of the MIP 2021-2027** and its Specific Objective 1 ‘*Reduction of all forms of malnutrition, particularly stunting and micronutrient deficiency for a better development of human capital*’. The EU investment to this Action amounts to EUR 30 million, contributing to achieve the EU commitment of allocating at least 20 per cent of its Official Development Assistance to social inclusion and human development."}, {"bbox": [96, 730, 1134, 942], "category": "Text", "text": "The **drivers of malnutrition in Mozambique** are the result of a combination of immediate and underlying causes, being directly related to inadequate dietary intake as well as disease, but indirectly to many factors, among others household and individual food insecurity, maternal well-being and child care, access to safe drinking water, adequate sanitation and health services, women's empowerment and gender equality, cultural beliefs and misconceptions, disability related stigma, structural vulnerabilities and climate change, population growth, displacement and conflict, loss of livelihoods and lack of access to land. While many nutrition interventions are delivered through the health sector, non-health interventions are also critical in order to address the more underlying and basic causes, and to address some key inequalities."}, {"bbox": [96, 954, 1134, 1141], "category": "Text", "text": "The Action builds upon the longstanding experience and lessons learnt from previous EU investments for improved nutrition, with particular reference to the ‘MDG programme¹⁶’ (10th EDF) and the ongoing ‘**PROMOVE**¹⁷ **Nutrição programme**¹⁸’ (11th EDF), both aiming at contributing to the reduction of stunting levels in Mozambique. It will also build synergies with the ongoing PROMOVE-Agribiz¹⁹ programme, through geographical and strategic convergence wherever possible. While consolidating and building on the work done in Zambezia and Nampula provinces, the Action will also expand the EU support for nutrition to selected districts in Cabo Delgado province, where the multiple attacks, which caused significant damage to public and private"}, {"bbox": [86, 1169, 657, 1189], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁹ IPC projections, Nov 2021-Sept 2022 ; Fews Net Mozambique; Reliefweb (OCHA)."}, {"bbox": [86, 1190, 633, 1211], "category": "Footnote", "text": "¹⁰ According to the latest 'Inquérito sobre o Orçamento Familiar', IOF 2019/2020."}, {"bbox": [86, 1212, 967, 1233], "category": "Footnote", "text": "¹¹ Mozambique's population is projected to more than double by 2050, from 29.5 million to 65.3 million (World Population Review)"}, {"bbox": [86, 1234, 453, 1255], "category": "Footnote", "text": "¹² EU country profile on nutrition, Mozambique (2021)"}, {"bbox": [86, 1257, 653, 1278], "category": "Footnote", "text": "¹³ Global Targets 2025: To improve maternal, infant and young child nutrition, WHO"}, {"bbox": [86, 1283, 1143, 1325], "category": "Footnote", "text": "¹⁴ According to the study 'Cost of Hunger (COHA) in Africa' (African Union et al. 2017), Mozambique loses almost 11 percent GDP each year to child stunting alone, equivalent to a yearly loss of 62 billion MZN (almost USD 1.6 billion)"}, {"bbox": [86, 1328, 967, 1349], "category": "Footnote", "text": "¹⁵ Prospects and Challenges: Mozambique's Growth and Human Development Outlook to 2040, Institute for Security Studies (2017)"}, {"bbox": [86, 1352, 1143, 1394], "category": "Footnote", "text": "¹⁶ MDG-1c programme' - Accelerate Progress Towards Millennium Development Goal 1c (FED/2012/024-173), EUR 87.7 million, implemented from 11/2012 to 06/2019 - see Final Evaluation MDG1c programme"}, {"bbox": [86, 1396, 1143, 1456], "category": "Footnote", "text": "¹⁷ PROMOVE is the EU integrated approach to rural development in Mozambique (11th EDF), which amounts at EUR 341,000,000, including support to rural roads, access to energy, sustainable agriculture and agribusiness, nutrition, sustainable management of natural resources, and trade facilitation. Geographical focus is on the provinces of Zambezia and Nampula, except the trade component which has a national focus."}, {"bbox": [86, 1459, 1143, 1575], "category": "Footnote", "text": "¹⁸ PROMOVE-Nutrição (FED/2016/38-044), EUR 30 M implemented in Zambezia and Nampula (06/2017 to 11/2022) + Recovery Resilience programme provinces - PROMOVE nutrição component (FED/2020/412-994), EUR 14.7 M implemented in Sofala (03/2020 to 02/2024). The intervention logic of the present Action is based on the design of PROMOVE- Nutrição, which aims to support the co-ordination and strategic planning functions for nutrition of the government while scaling up the implementation of 'essential' nutrition-specific and sensitive interventions in the areas of health and WASH. The program is still ongoing but its positive experience and lessons learnt have been included under this new Action - see chapter on lessons learnt. A final evaluation is foreseen at the end of 2022."}, {"bbox": [86, 1579, 1136, 1643], "category": "Footnote", "text": "¹⁹ PROMOVE-Agribiz (FED/2018/039-900, EUR 68 M) is a programme implemented in 10 districts in Zambezia and Nampula provinces. The component implemented by FAO (EUR 30.8 M) is particularly relevant to this Action as it aims at: i) improving food and nutrition security and resilience of smallholders through climate-smart and nutrition-sensitive agriculture; and ii) enhancing rural competitiveness."}, {"bbox": [1038, 1681, 1143, 1705], "category": "Page-footer", "text": "Page 5 of 31"}]