Mozambique
Mozambique adopted its first National Action Plan (NAP) in 2018 for the period 2018-2022. The NAP was developed by the Gender, Children and Social Welfare Ministry in partnership with UN Women and the governments of Iceland and Norway. The NAP includes priority actions to be implemented by state institutions, civil society and cooperation partners in the context of women’s participation in conflict management and resolution; assistance for displaced and refugee women; the prevention of violence and sexual abuse; and post-conflict reconstruction. The NAP keeps women’s and girls’ human rights in conflict and post-conflict at the forefront of its focus, with the goal to integrate a gender perspective in all actions and strategies on conflict prevention and management; expand efforts for the security, physical and mental health dignity of women and girls; and secure the rights of women and girls in conflict and post-conflict situations. Furthermore, the NAP includes an allocated budget, broken down by priority sections.
Mozambique reported on the implementation of its NAP in its national reporting for Beijing+25 and in preparation for CSW64 (2020).
Mozambique gained independence from Portugal in 1975, after ten years of liberation efforts, and experienced a civil war that ended in 1992 with the signing of the Rome General Peace Accords. Mozambique continues to experience the negative social, political, and economic impacts of the war, which had a distinct gendered impact of women, specifically through the usage of sexual violence as a weapon of war. Furthermore, women survivors of the civil war continue to suffer from the traumatic effects of their experiences, silenced and given no right to reparations. Despite the negative impacts of the war, women also played a role as peacebuilders and activists, in particular through assisting victims of armed conflict.
CEDAW
1991
Global Gender Gap Index 2020
56 out of 153
Arms Trade Treaty Ratified
2018
Military expenditure (2019)
$137 million USD
Explore Mozambique's National Action Plan
NAP Development
There is no mention of civil society forming part of the creation of the NAP.
WILPF was not involved in the development of the NAP.
The NAP was launched by the Gender, Children and Social Welfare Ministry in partnership with UNWomen and the Governments of Iceland and Norway and was created along with the 2015-2019 five-year Government Programme that aims to improve the well-being of Mozambicans, consolidate national unity, peace and sovereignty.
NAP Implementation
Civil society will have access to the indicators of the NAP for the implementation and will submit and analytical report every year. They will also participate in the joint annual meeting.
Multiple Government bodies are responsible for the implementation of the NAP such as the Gender, Children and Social Welfare Ministry, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Ministry of Interior, among others.
NAP Monitoring and Evaluation
Civil society is also responsible for monitoring the NAP and will require access to the indicators to do so. This access is important because civil society are equally as responsible as the government for monitoring the NAP. Based on annual reports from civil society and governmental bodies, there will be a final report with both perspectives included. This will turn into one final report through a Monitoring and Evaluation Committee.
The implementation period for the Mozambican National Plan of Action is five years (2018-2022).
The five primary objectives of Mozambique’s NAP are focused on:
- Creating a favourable environment for the implementation of the legislation on women, peace and security;
- Integrating a gender perspective in all actions and strategies on conflict prevention and management;
- Guaranteeing the participation of women in decision making structures in peace and security processes;
- Promoting mechanisms to secure increased recruitment, retention and promotion of women in defence and security, and justice bodies;
- Reinforcing the fight against all forms of violence against women and girls in armed and non-armed conflict contexts.
Each area of work has different actions assigned. For example, priority area 4.1, on policy and legal framework on women, peace and security include actions such as:
- Creating a multisectorial working group for the implementation and monitoring of the commitments on women, peace and security;
- Building capacity of staff in key sectors on women, peace and security issues;
- Ratifying, domesticating and implementing legislation on women, peace and security.
Each strategic objective has a number of listed indicators. For example, the first objective on policy and legal framework on women, peace and security include several indicators of which different entities are responsible for such as. For instance, for the following objectives, the Ministry of Gender, Child, and Social Action, Ministry of the Interior, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, as well as all key sectors are responsible:
- Greater representation and participation of involved sectors in group meetings;
- Number of staff in key sectors trained on women, peace and security issues;
- Number of UNSC resolutions and other legislation on women, peace and security ratified and implemented in the country.
The monitoring and evaluation framework incorporates an annual report based on the indicators outlined. This was was developed after careful consultations with civil society, non-governmental and governmental actors. Monitoring will be done from the perspectives of civil society and government bodies, through a Monitoring and Evaluation Committee. The committee should present two annual reports, one from civil society and one from governmental bodies, and hold two alignment and extraordinary semi-annual meetings. The final report will include both perspectives.
The NAP has an allocated budget with a total of 116, 835, 00 MZM. Each priority section of the NAP has an allocated budget as well as the entities responsible for the action.
Mozambique’s NAP does not discuss disarmament issues.