Speeches Shim
Mozambique has the eighth highest HIV prevalence in the world, and according to UNAIDS, 12.6% of the adult population is living with HIV. While the country has made strides in testing people for HIV and providing treatment, systemic challenges, such as the need to travel long distances to access care, long wait times in facilities, stigma, poor quality healthcare, and inadequate communication about the importance of staying on treatment have resulted in a high proportion of HIV-positive individuals discontinuing their treatment.
Demand for HIV viral load (VL) testing in Mozambique outweighs current capacity. The increasing demand results in backlogs of VL samples throughout the country- this problem will become more acute as demand continues to grow. Backlogs of VL samples result in long delays in the delivery of VL test results to clinicians and patients, negatively impacting patient care.
Nearly 12 million children in Sub-Saharan Africa have lost one or both parents to AIDS. Many more children have been made vulnerable because of family illness and the widespread impact of HIV/AIDS on their communities. OVCs are more vulnerable to abuse and exploitation and are also more likely to engage in unsafe behaviors, increasing the risk of HIV infection. Targeted OVC interventions, linked with broader development efforts around education, food and nutrition, and livelihood assistance, contribute to reducing the risk and impact of HIV/AIDS on the most vulnerable population in Mozambique.
The government of Mozambique has made progress in its efforts to combat malaria and address issues pertaining to Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH). However, malaria is still endemic throughout Mozambique, and its entire population of 26.4 million (2016) is at risk. Malaria is considered the most important public health problem in Mozambique and accounts for 29% of all deaths. Among children under five years of age, malaria accounts for 42% of deaths. Regarding MNCH, despite substantial improvements, preventable maternal and child deaths continue to be unacceptably high.
Indicators for family planning, HIV/AIDS, orphans and vulnerable children (OVC), malaria, and nutrition demonstrate the urgent need for national multi-channel social and behavior change (SBC) campaigns to promote healthy behavior and use of health products and services across Mozambique. Mozambique currently has one of the lowest modern contraceptive prevalence rates, with rates as low as 17.8% percent in some provinces.
USAID is proud to support Mozambique’s leadership in the global HIV/AIDS response. Through PEPFAR, USAID improves service delivery and provides technical assistance to maximize the quality, coverage, and impact of the national HIV/AIDS response. PEPFAR aligns investments to scale up evidence-based interventions in the geographic areas and populations with the highest burden of HIV/AIDS. USAID also supports improvements in the health workforce, financing, management, information systems, supply chain, and service delivery.
USAID’s family planning and reproductive health (FP/RH) program aims to: 1) increase access to a wide range of modern contraceptive methods and high quality services for postpartum women, HIV positive women and adolescents, high parity women, and post-abortion care women at both community and facility levels; 2) increase demand for modern contraceptive methods and high quality FP/RH services; 3) strengthen social behavior change communication interventions; and, 4) strengthen FP/RH systems in strategic planning, human resources, financial systems, commodities, and supply chain management.
Mozambique is one of fourteen priority countries targeted by the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). USAID/Mozambique, in collaboration with the Government of Mozambique’s (GRM) Ministry of Health (MoH), created the Health Infrastructure Development Program (HIDP) to support GRM’s efforts to improve and expand health care services for the people of Mozambique.
Latest figures indicate that HIV/AIDS prevalence in Mozambique is 13%, with 29% prevalence among orphans aged 15-17, and almost 40,000 AIDS related deaths in 2015. Three randomized clinical trials showed that male circumcision (MC) reduces female to male HIV transmission by approximately 60%. In Mozambique, MC has been practiced by many communities for centuries. In addition to having religious significance, MC often serves as a rite of passage to adulthood and is performed as part of adolescent initiation rites.
Aflatoxins are pervasive in the value chains of key staple crops such as maize and groundnuts in many developing countries where agriculture is a significant contributor to Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Mozambique is one such country, where agriculture constitutes 24% of the GDP, with 80% of the population dependent on it as a source of income. Some of the most commonly cultivated crops in Mozambique, such as maize, cassava, and groundnuts, are easily contaminated by aflatoxins and widely consumed by the population. Aflatoxin exposure and its association with growth impairment in children may contribute to a significant public health burden, especially in less developed countries like Mozambique.
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