The Mozambican government plans to reduce the prevalence of chronic malnutrition among children under five from the current approximately 37% to 30% by 2029, as part of broader efforts to strengthen food and nutrition security in the country. The target was announced on Monday (14) by President Daniel Chapo at the opening of the 1st National Conference on Food and Nutrition Security, held in Maputo.
Chapo described the target as a national commitment to children, mothers, and young people, arguing that the fight against malnutrition must go beyond an approach focused exclusively on food production.
“This target constitutes a national commitment to our children, our mothers, our young people, and to the future of Mozambique,” the President stated.
According to the head of state, the persistence of high malnutrition rates — even in provinces with strong agricultural output — demonstrates that the problem is not necessarily linked to a lack of food, but also to dietary habits.
“This chronic malnutrition is sometimes not due to a lack of food, but rather a lack of proper dietary habits,” he explained.
To reverse this situation, Chapo advocated an integrated approach encompassing increased production, reduced post-harvest losses, improved conservation and storage, processing and logistics, and better-functioning markets. The objective, the President said, is to ensure that safe, nutritious, and diversified food reaches families at affordable prices.
The President’s position aligned with that of the Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Fisheries, Roberto Albino, who stressed the need to strengthen coordination among the different sectors and actors involved in food and nutrition security.
According to the minister, the conference aims to “strengthen collaboration among different actors to jointly drive investment and implementation of the Food and Nutrition Security Policy and Strategy, 2024–30.”
Roberto Albino argued that the response to food security challenges must involve the government, civil society, the private sector, development partners, and specialists, through a multi-sectoral coordination framework capable of translating commitments into concrete action. The conference is also expected to contribute to mobilising technical and financial resources, as well as strengthening monitoring and accountability mechanisms.
In the same vein, Chapo maintained that food security cannot be addressed in isolation by individual ministries, given that household needs span sectors including agriculture, health, education, water, sanitation, and social protection.
“People’s lives are not organised into ministries,” he said, calling for greater convergence of interventions in the same territories and among the most vulnerable families.
The President added that increased production must be linked to income generation for producers through improved marketing and distribution conditions. For Chapo, an agricultural sector capable of producing, processing, and supplying the domestic market should simultaneously contribute to food security, job creation, and economic independence.
Climate change was also identified as a factor that could undermine progress on food security. With the approaching El Niño phenomenon, the head of state called for anticipatory action, including investments in water management, irrigation, adapted technologies, early warning systems, and storage infrastructure, in order to reduce the impact of droughts, floods, and cyclones on agricultural production and household food access.
Held under the theme “Food and Nutrition Security: Collective Responsibility for the Development of Mozambique,” the inaugural conference brings together representatives from government, the private sector, civil society, academia, farmers, and cooperation partners, with the aim of advancing an integrated national agenda to improve population access to safe and nutritious food.
Source: Diário Económico
Original article: https://www.diarioeconomico.co.mz/2026/09/14/desenvolvimento-2/1-a-conferencia-nacional-de-seguranca-alimentar-e-nutricional-governo-preve-reduzir-desnutricao-para-30-ate-2029/
