The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is to spend more than US$100 million over the next four years to improve water security in Mozambique.
Under the plan, USAID will work with the Mozambican government to strengthen the capacity of the country’s water, sanitation and hygiene sector. “We believe that by working together, we can achieve our shared goal of providing safe water and sanitation for all Mozambicans,” said Isobel Coleman, USAID deputy administrator.
The move comes against a backdrop of increasing US engagement with Africa, as Washington seeks to counter significant diplomatic and economic inroads made by Beijing and Moscow.
[See more: Mozambique is battling a massive cholera outbreak]
USAID describes the water security, sanitation and hygiene needs in Mozambique as “significant.” The WHO estimated in 2022 that 37 percent of people did not have access to basic water services and only 38 percent had access to basic sanitation facilities.
The new investments by USAID will provide clean water and sanitation for at least 325,000 people in northern Mozambique. The programme includes improvements in basic water and sanitation services to 90 schools and clinics.
Other US activities in Portuguese-speaking Africa include the financing of the Lobito Corridor – a rail network connecting Angola to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
