Within Mozambique, CARE began working in-country in 1984 (General Country Agreement signed on February 9th, 1984) delivering emergency and large-scale humanitarian response programs to war affected communities. CARE was a principal recipient of United States Agency for International Development (USAID) at this time working closely with what was the precursor to INGC (National Institute of Disaster Management), the Department for Preventing and Combating Natural Disasters (DPPCN).

Coordinating logistically with DPPCN, CARE provided relief food through emergency logistics nation-wide with an average of 11,000 MTs being distributed on a monthly basis during the critical latter years of the war when a great percentage of the population were displaced and living without benefit of agricultural production. During this time of relief distribution, a number of CARE staff members were killed in the line of duty.

Following the end of the war in 1992, CARE’s programmatic focus evolved towards longer-term projects that addressed the health, water & sanitation, agriculture, economic and food security needs of impoverished communities. These longer-term programs included women’s empowerment and gender equity focus. Partnership with other local civil society actors was and continues to be essential to the delivery of CARE’s programs.

As the Mozambique government’s capacity to deliver basic services to impoverished communities improved CARE has continued to evolve its role from a solely service delivery agency to an organization providing technical support within key sectors. CARE’s 30-year presence in Mozambique has resulted in the agency having a strong reputation as a reliable, efficient and trustworthy emergency response development partner effectively empowering the most vulnerable populations in the country.