Quarterly Report: Parceria Cívica para Boa Governação Program in Mozambique

The program, a grant awarded to Counterpart International, targets six sectors: biodiversity conservation, climate change, education, extractive industry, health, and transparent and accountable governance. PCBG partners with up to 12 civil society organizations (CSOs) to achieve its goal. The program transitioned from the start-up to implementation phase and the program team has been reaching out to various organizations to introduce and raise awareness about the program's opportunities to support civic activism. During the quarter, the team met with 66 organizations individually and at round table meetings to learn about CSOs' work and experience in conducting advocacy at both the national- and provincial-levels in the six target sectors. The majority of the organizations met had previously or are currently implementing community engagement work, monitoring the delivery of services, and to a certain extent conducting advocacy. To understand the prevailing context of civil society operations, Counterpart commissioned a civil society assessment to examine civic activism in the six target sectors, identify government priorities, and come up with strategic and programmatic recommendations for achieving greater program impact in Mozambique. The field work was carried out in the provinces of Cabo Delgado, Inhambane, Nampula, and Maputo. The assessment's outcome will be critical in informing program implementation. The round table meetings and initial findings from the CSO assessment informed PCBG's sub-grant strategy and development of the grantee selection criterion. The information was also used to guide the call for proposals through the Annual Program Statement (APS) that will be used to select up to 12 CSOs with whom PCBG will work over the life of the program. The APS is meant to encourage organizations to be creative and innovative in program design and implementation. The ongoing civil strife between the country's ruling party Frente de Libertação de Moçambique (FRELIMO) and the Resistencia Nacional Mocambicana (RENAMO) continues to affect the country's economy, citizens' welfare, and CSO operations in the provinces most affected. This might pose a challenge to PCBG given that a number of organizations might be reluctant to submit concept notes due to fear of government harassment and intimidation. The government's Economic and Social Plan for 2017 sets a target of 5.5% economic growth and proposes to increase primary school attendance from 65% to 86.5% and to hire 8,300 new teachers in 2017. The Plan also seeks to expand vaccination coverage to 90% of children under one year of age and to increase the number of births that take place in health units to 76% by the end of 2017. The government's policy priorities will inform PCBG program design and shape grantee's advocacy priorities in the social service sector. PCBG will also include tools to assist grantee's to conduct a gender analysis, including identifying potential negative consequences. The previous ministers in the Ministries of Education and Human Development as well as Mineral Resources and Energy were well regarded and perceived by development partners and civil society organizations as strong collaborators, advocates, and champions of transparency and accountability within the respective ministries. Their departure could be a setback to civil society efforts in promoting transparency and accountability in the sectors of Education, Mineral Resources, and Energy. On a positive note, in response to in-depth research on lost revenues and long-term advocacy led by World Wildlife Fund, the Mozambique's Parliament approved a law prohibiting the export of timber logs and established a value-added tax, which varies depending on the level of processing carried out in the country. The government expects the law to promote job creation, increase tax revenues from timber exports, promote the domestic wood processing industry, and contribute to the sustainable management of forest resources in the country. The passing of the law is an indication that sustained lobbying and structured advocacy by civil society organizations based on evidence and sound analysis can bring about policy change.