Study of future Norwegian support to civil society in Mozambique

As the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Norway and Mozambique states that the development of civil society will be of special concern in their co-operation, the Norwegian embassy commissioned a study of civil society in Mozambique. An emphasis of the study was civil society's role in Mozambique's democratisation process.

The topic of civil society is comprehensive and many aspects still remain to be analysed and understood. This is particularly true for the potential roles of certain ""informal"" associative forms in both rural and urban areas, as well as the influence of the ""new"" churches. Notwithstanding, numerous discussions with a broad range of interlocutors in Mozambique contributed to enlighten the team and we hereby express our gratitude to all those who generously shared information and points of view.

The study found that there seems to be no clear separation between the formal and the informal, the rural and the urban, the modern and the traditional, those inside and outside the "state system" in Mozambique. The state effectively reaches only to the district capital, in some areas the Administrative Post. An estimated 60 per cent of the population lives according to traditional norms and structures with little notion of the state, formal laws and their rights. Governance is in the hands of indigenous/""non-state""/""non-system"" leaders and structures that exist in many if not most areas, the leaders have legitimacy in that their position and their powers are accepted by the local communities and there is a degree of formality, structure and division of responsibilities. They have important functions in the distribution of resources (especially land), the resolution of conflicts, and in some cases even impose ""taxes"".

Urban areas reveal various processes that demonstrate the influence of the urbanites' recent rural experience. Several of the ""civic associations"" that transformed themselves into parties to contest the municipal elections include members of the traditional power elite. Many of the most marginalised groups have developed their own norms, rules of behaviour, and solidarity networks to provide themselves with a modicum of self-protection and inclusion. There are also parallel residence-based networks, built on regional origin or religious affiliation that provide a web of mutual assistance, access to social services, and even the resolution of serious criminal conflicts.

In the team's view, many of these manifestations constitute civil society activities, with a constant interface between the formal and informal, modern and traditional, rural and urban. However, because on the one hand they occur predominantly at community level and on the other hand they do not fit the stereotype of the formal association to all intents and purposes they are ""invisible"" and are not taken into account. The NGOs that predominate in the visible civil society tend to have a corporate management and staffing structure and pay market salaries. They depend on donor funding that demands planning, reporting and accounting capacity and effective programme implementation that requires a sophisticated organisation.

Mozambique's history has produced a closed and non-consultative governance culture. Non-state activism is still a new phenomenon for both its proponents and the state. Some actors or issues achieve prominence in one period, only to fade away and be replaced by others; some grow in experience, confidence and capacity while others just plod on. One of the stated pre-requisites for achieving the Government's objectives under its Five-Year Plan 2000-2004 is, however, increased participation by citizens, communities and civil society in the formulation and evaluation of government policies and in satisfying their needs. Similarly one of the assumptions underlying the Government's Poverty Reduction Action Plan (PARPA) is the need for the broad initiative and action of citizens and their institutions (families, companies, associations, clubs, NGOs etc.). Although a welcome opening, both documents tend to lean more towards a "self-reliance" community involvement in practical development efforts than a stronger engagement in policy and planning processes.

The Public Sector Reform Strategy identifies some of the obstacles to greater civil society participation to be the indefinition of roles of the public, private and civil sector and weak institutionalised mechanisms for participation and representation in matters of public interest. Another important obstacle is the prevailing culture of top-down centralised governance and the slow pace of decentralisation. Some ministries are considered more open for dialogue and participation than others, among them the Ministry of Planning and Finance (decentralised planning and budgeting process), the Ministry of Health (relations with churches and NGOs and positive proposals for closer collaboration with traditional medicine and communities), the Ministry of Agriculture (Land Campaign and promotion of voluntary associativism) and the Ministry of Education (not-for-profit service providers and community involvement).

An extremely negative aspect of government - citizen relations, and one where civil society can and should play a decisive role, is the rising tide of corruption in public institutions. Local and foreign vested interests, fear, resistance to change, incompetence and a weak judicial system and laws are main obstacles to changing the situation. Transparency International's Mozambican chapter, ""Etica"" proposes a strategy focusing on citizens and their role to combat the evil.

The issues taken up by civil society actors are mainly land issues, domestic violence, AIDS and vulnerable groups - or simply promotion of the well-being/interests of their constituencies. In terms of roles and activities, most civil society organisations tend to concentrate primarily on the information/education and well-being aspects, while also incorporating some degree of participation/consultation (depending on the opportunities provided by government) and some advocacy. The view of civil society as primarily championing democratic reforms assumes a well-educated, well-informed society, and is too narrow for Mozambique where civil society is still in its infancy. There is no historical experience to draw on, the legal framework is archaic, government attitudes range from suspicion to ambivalence, the vast majority of the population is illiterate, uninformed, and extremely poor. Many of the so-called ""advocacy"" organisations have strong service delivery components, and would probably have less impact without them.

Among the categories of civil society actors are also those providing a voice for educated professionals: the elite professional associations. One " voluntary" professional association linked to the private sector, the Economists Association (AMECOM) has started to have a considerable impact in promoting debate on governance issues through its monthly lectures by members, regularly attended by up to 300 opinion and decision makers, including senior members of the government. The association is also making a concerted effort to overcome the country's political polarisation by actively encouraging cross-party participation and avoiding partisan positions.

The current human rights focus of the direct support portfolio should be maintained, but might be expanded to cover broader governance issues, also through the Embassy's promotion of more active involvement of civil society in policy formulation, implementation and monitoring.

Donors should contribute to ensuring continued research on ""informal"" civil society and its functions, as well as the significance of the increased influence of evangelical churches.

A supportive attitude from the Embassy towards increased influence by civil society in development does not necessarily imply funding of more individual civic actors.