The Portuguese government has authorised expenditure of up to 40 million euros for the contract to be signed with the European Commission for the European Union Military Training Mission in Mozambique, says a resolution published on Thursday, 24 March in the Portuguese Official Gazette.
According to the resolution, the Council of Ministers decided to “authorise expenditure on the contract to be signed with the European Union [EU] for the implementation of the assistance measure, under the European Peace Facility, to support military units trained by the European Union Military Training Mission in Mozambique.
The expenditure will be, “in accordance with Council Decision (CFSP) 2021/2032 of 19 November 2021, up to a global amount of EUR 40 million,” it added.
The resolution determines, however, that “the financial charges resulting” from that value “may not exceed, in each economic year,” the amounts of 30 million euros in 2022 and 10 million euros in 2023. But, the amount set in each economic year “may be increased by the balance determined in the year preceding it”.
Also according to the document, “the financial costs resulting from this resolution are supported by funds entered or to be entered in the budget of the Directorate General for National Defence Policy, exclusively from the European Union.
The resolution delegates, “with the power to sub-delegate”, to the member of the Government responsible for the area of National Defence “the power to practice all subsequent acts to be carried out under this resolution”, which takes effect from the date of its approval.
The implementation of this assistance measure will have “a duration of 30 months, from the date of conclusion of the contract between the European Commission and the Ministry of National Defence, involving, during the first 12 months, European funding amounting to 40 million euros.
The province of Cabo Delegado, in northern Mozambique, “is experiencing a serious crisis at various levels, particularly humanitarian, economic and internal defence,” the document said.
The European Union “aware of the vulnerabilities to which this population is subject and in order to avoid contagion to other provinces as well as to neighbouring countries, has adopted under the European Peace Facility” the establishment of “a European Union Military Training Mission in Mozambique (EUTM Mozambique),” explains the resolution.
“Following this guideline, the strategic objective of EUTM Mozambique is to support capacity building of units of the Mozambican Armed Forces selected to constitute a future rapid reaction force, so that these units develop the necessary and sustainable capabilities to re-establish security in Cabo Delgado,” the resolution states.
Usually, the European Commission chooses non-governmental organisations for the implementation and execution of this type of project.
However, in the specific case of Cabo Delgado province, the European Commission “recognising the added value of having Portugal directly involved in this project, due to the good relations between the two countries, both due to their privileged knowledge of the area and their language proximity, has chosen to have Portugal, through the Ministry of National Defence, as a partner”, the resolution stresses.
In this context, the Council established, on 19 November 2021, that the implementation of the assistance measures is attributed to the Ministry of National Defence, which is responsible for providing the Mozambican units with “individual equipment for soldiers, collective equipment at company level, land and amphibious means of mobility, technical devices, and a field hospital.
The conflict has caused over 3,100 deaths, according to the ACLED conflict registration project, and over 859,000 displaced persons, according to the authorities.
