 Mozambique
COUNTRY OVERVIEW AND PROJECT BACKGROUND
Mozambique has an estimated population of 19.6 million and is among the five poorest countries in the world according to the UNDP Human Poverty Index. Extreme poverty affects over 50 percent of the total population. Life expectancy is only 44 years and illiteracy rates are 40 percent for men and 71 percent for women. In rural areas of the country, illiteracy can be as high as 52 percent for men and 83 percent for women. The total fertility rate is 5.2 and CPR for modern methods is 5 percent among women in union. However, contraceptive prevalence varies significantly by area of residence, with very low rates in rural areas. The public sector is the main source of contraceptive methods, supplying 82.7 percent of all FP commodities. Combined with high fertility and low contraceptive use Mozambique also faces high maternal (1,500 per 100,000) and infant mortality (22 per hundred live births).
Affected by an extended war, floods, and drought, Mozambique has also been hard hit by HIV/AIDS. In 2004, projected HIV prevalence among men and women aged 15–49 was 14.9%, with an estimated 1.4 million HIV-positive people. HIV is not uniformly distributed: The Central Region shows the highest HIV prevalence (20.4%, 2005) which corresponds to areas of high population mobility, including transport corridors, particularly the routes from the Indian Ocean ports across Mozambique to South Africa, Zimbabwe, Malawi, and Zambia. The prevalence rates in the Northern region doubled from 2000 to 2004 (6% to 12.9% for women and 4.6% to 9.9% for men), and the Southern region is also growing at a steady pace with an estimated 50% average increase in HIV prevalence over the four-year period (12.9% to 18.3% for women and 9.9% to 14% for men). Young people ages 15 to 24 are particularly vulnerable, with rates three times higher among young girls compared to boys.
The President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) is supporting Mozambican institutions that are leading the fight against HIV/AIDS. The following critical interventions have been identified:
- Scale-up of prevention, care, ART treatment, and community care and support for OVC and PLHA by supporting a multi-level and integrated health network
- Prevention of PMTCT, injection safety, medical transmission and blood safety at the clinic level, promotion of abstinence and behavior change among youth and young adults, and prevention of high-risk behaviors among high-risk populations
During the last four years, the Health Communication Partnership has responded to USAID/Mozambique Strategic Objectives 3 and 9.
Strategic Objective 3: Increase the use of essential maternal/child health and FP services in focus areas
Strategic Objective 9: HIV Transmission Reduced and Impact of the AIDS Epidemic Mitigated
ACTIVITIES
Note about materials: Some of the materials and resources listed on each page are available in their full form, others are represented by image or citation only. For more information and resources, go to www.jhuccp.org
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