Focusing on Mozambique

When thinking of water and food there is this central idea that this means water as a complement to growing food. What if we were to think about water providing the food in a sense? This is what led me to think about focusing this weeks blog on a case study of Mozambique. Situated on the southeastern coast of Africa right across from Madagascar, Mozambique has 2.800 km (FAO) of coastline. Thus, fisheries are important to Mozambique as well as agriculture. I first began thinking of Mozambique as a case study as my sister lives there, and secondly because I always want to learn more about this diverse country.

Map of Mozambique (CIA World Factbook)

As an introduction, Mozambique was a Portuguese colony until 1975 and suffered a 16-year civil war which ended in 1992 (FAO) that devastated the country, its economy and created divisions among its citizens. Mozambique with its location and climate is considered a tropical to subtropical country (CIA World Factbook) and relies mostly on groundwater as its main water resource. The fact that Mozambique relies on groundwater is much more complicated than it seems. Many of the rivers that run through Mozambique have their origins in different country’s (FAO Aquastat) thus this can lead to civil conflicts and water wars. This is why Mozambique is seen as a vulnerable state when it comes to water and food. The vulnerability attached to water resources hasn’t stopped agriculture in Mozambique. About 75% (CIA World Factbook) of the population of Mozambique work in the agricultural field, with many more small-holder farms propelling the economy than commercial farms. According to the FAO, there are about 3.2 million small-scale farmers whose work and contribution to the economy count for 95% of all agriculture production while the rest is commercially farmed. I find this statistic extremely interesting as it ultimately shows that commercial farms don’t really have a future in Mozambique because of its water resources. There have not been any modern irrigation techniques used in Mozambique since reliance on groundwater is essential which smallholder farmers are better at realizing. Another interesting fact from the FAO says that only 10% of the land in Mozambique is used for agriculture. These areas are found in flood and drought-prone locations in the country. The country as a whole is made up of lowlands at the coasts, uplands towards the middle with plateaus in the northwest and mountains in the west (CIA Factbook). Thus it is easy to see that only 10% of the land in Mozambique could be used as agriculture, also leaving another hint as to why this country is vulnerable to shocks and disasters.

Fishing boats in Mozambique, only 2-3% are motorized (FAO)

The beauty with this country, as I mentioned above, is the fact that it has a vast water resource that provides food in its connection to the Indian Ocean. The artisanal fisheries, like the smallholder farms, are the main sources of seafood for the country(FAO). In one article I found to bring up interesting points, Mozambique's fisheries were considered in three subdivisions where “artisanal or small-scale” fisheries were the main focus and the main reason Mozambique is able to rely on fisheries for their economic growth. This is interesting because these artisanal fish catches are mostly done in small boats powered by the wind which shows the relative simplicity and lack of technology Mozambique has, however, it does not stop it (Jacquet, Fox, Motta, Ngusaru & Zeller, 2010). According to the country’s Minister of the Sea, Inland Waters and Fisheries, in 2018 alone the fisheries of Mozambique contributed to 8% of the total gross domestic product with 3,490 tonnes of fish (UNEP). These contributions of food to the country, coming from the ocean, are thanks to the mangroves, coral reefs, and seagrasses that host a diverse selection of marine life. The coastal communities of Mozambique are the ones that rely on these fisheries the most as this is their main source of food, however much of the fish can be transported to nearby markets and sold more inland. The majority of Mozambique’s fish catch, 90% is done through its marine catch fisheries (Doherty, Brito, Mcbride, Le Manach, 2015) which are again the small artisanal citizen-run captures. Water is crucial to sustaining life, in Africa, we all know water is a tool used for profits, civil conflicts and inequality. When examining water and food it is easily forgotten to examine other types of water other than freshwater. Being able to investigate Mozambique and its economy which still relies heavily on agriculture, but with a side of marine fisheries, it is in some ways uplifting to know there are other ways to provide food for citizens other than agriculture which is vulnerable.

Shows the fish caught by small artisanal fishermen (WordPress) 

Comments

  1. ZoëOctober 30, 2019 at 4:50 AM

    I like how you focused on more of a positive example. How do you think Mozambique fits into Africa when looking at agriculture, is it more of an outlier that does not have many food insecurity problems because of its geography?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Pauline van TulderOctober 30, 2019 at 5:36 AM

      This is a very good question. I don't know if I would say an outlier but would definitely say its an interesting case. I know they still struggle with food production and distribution, but the fact there is a coastline gives them an upper hand than countries that are landlocked!

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