Benjamin* wants peace. He dreams of working in his old field close to the one of his brother once again. Like other former combatants in central Mozambique, he hopes to work on his land and grow his own vegetables, maize, beans, and cassava and possibly raise chickens and goats.

Just a few months ago, Benjamin joined the 3,558 of the 5,221 former RENAMO (Mozambican National Resistance) combatants already demobilised through the disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) process; a central component of the Maputo Accord for Peace and National Reconciliation (Maputo Accord). Now, he is learning new skills alongside members of the community he left more than 20 years ago and reconnecting with his family.

“From the moment that my brothers and I started our reintegration into the community and society, I have a sense of relief and happiness; We are very happy to be back”, says Benjamin in Cheringoma District, Sofala province. “Since we came to the community, there have been no issues; I have been welcomed as a brother. I am very happy; The community is happy. This peace must go on, as it must be, and continue to be so. This is our will”, he continues.

Benjamin, former combatant, believes peace and family go together. Credit: UNCDF/Karel Prinsloo

The Maputo Accord, signed in 2019 by President Filipe Nyusi and RENAMO leader Ossufo Momade, formally put an end to decades of conflict and insecurity and brought communities together.

The Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Mozambique, Mirko Manzoni, reflects on the steady progress made over the last three years and says that “the focus of the peace process now shifts towards securing long-term sustainability, with reintegration and reconciliation activities becoming of ever increasing importance”.

Launched in October 2021, the DELPAZ (Local Development for Peace Consolidation) Programme forms part of the European Union's comprehensive support for the implementation of the Maputo Accord.

“Reintegration is a very important process. It is important to receive people, shaking their hands, with an open heart, because these are our brothers, they are from our community. These are our grandfathers, mothers, fathers and, in my case, my uncle”, affirms Artur*, Benjamin’s nephew and new neighbour.

Under the leadership of the Government of Mozambique with the support of the Austrian Development Agency, Italian Agency for Development Cooperation and UN Capital Development Fund, DELPAZ aims at promoting local economic development opportunities in communities previously affected by conflict in 14 districts of Sofala, Manica and Tete Provinces.

“With a special focus on women, youth and other groups, including former combatants, and their families, activities include investments in economic infrastructure, as well as improving access to public services and promoting technology and agricultural practices and entrepreneurship”, highlights Antonio Sánchez-Benedito Gaspar, EU Ambassador to Mozambique. “Contributing in turn to more equitable social and economic development across the country."

Community members working in their fields together in Inhaminga village, Sofala Province. Credit: UNCDF/Philip Hatcher-Moore

“As we rebuild it is also important that there is reconciliation”, affirms Galício António, chief of the Nhamaze Administrative Outpost in Gorongosa District. “They are back, and they are producing again, they are educating their children, they are integrating into social life, they are participating in the community”, he continues.

Permanent Secretary of the District, Ana Cherinda, has seen up close the impacts of the conflict in the daily life of people and communities as well as in local government’s ability to provide services.

“As in any conflict situation, we lived constrained, we could not freely develop all our activities, and this was the case for the people as well as the district government”, comments Ana Cherinda. She remembers how a few administrative posts were closed for a very long time and populations could not count on public services due to insecurity. “Services could not go on in a normalised way. We could not accomplish our governing plans”.

UNCDF's role in DELPAZ is to support authorities in strengthening the inclusion of local voices and experiences in participatory planning processes and investment cycles, as a solid foundation for promoting lasting peace, national reconciliation and inclusive sustainable development.

Through participatory processes, community members, including former combatants, will be able to participate in the local development planning exercises, in which consultative council members decide on which project to prioritize based on specific local needs. These vary enormously from district to district, from schools and health clinics to water irrigation systems. Credit: UNCDF/Karel Prinsloo

According to Ramon Cervera, UNCDF Representative in Mozambique, “DELPAZ improves inclusive governance by providing capacity building and technical assistance to local governments and local consultative councils so that communities can actively participate in planning and budgeting exercises and be included in decentralised governance decision-making processes in a gender-sensitive manner”.

Through DELPAZ, local authorities listen to the voices and needs of local communities in defining and selecting essential infrastructure and public services to be provided by the districts themselves to their communities in order to promote sustainable local development and adaptation to climate change.

“Now, with peace being consolidated, we can engage former combatants, bring them into the planning process, and help them to benefit from locally-led development that listens to them”, Stella da Graça Pinto Novo Zeca, Secretary of State for Sofala Province.

Benjamin, Artur, Galício, Ana, and Stella’s hopes are similar to those of other former combatants and communities affected by conflict in Mozambique. They want to build new, productive lives for themselves, their families and their communities. They want to build a better future for their country. Through locally-led development, DELPAZ supports these hopes to come true.

*name has been changed.