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Mozambique

Members of the Massingir HIV women's group sing a song written by themselves about HIV [Annie Bungeroth]

It is estimated that more than 70% of its 19 million people live below the poverty line, with more than half the population living on less than $1 a day

Five centuries as a Portuguese colony came to an end in Mozambique with independence in 1975.

Since then economic dependence on South Africa, a prolonged civil war and a cycle of severe droughts and floods have hindered the country's development.

CAFOD spent £449,000 in Mozambique in 2006-07

A UN-negotiated peace deal ended the war in 1992 and, although economic growth since has been successful, little of this prosperity is reaching the poorest communities.

Mozambique remains highly dependent on external aid, receiving over $500m per year (60 per cent of its annual budget). It is likely it will remain dependent on this aid in the medium to long-term.

Farmers march in Mozambique for the International Day of Peasant Struggle 2008, pushing for a greater voice in government decisions
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Daniel Ubisu is leader of the Association of Honey Production - a project in Mozambique providing a steady income for his community, and also helps the local environment
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Elisa, 19, attends school in Mumemo, Mozambique, where young people are taught sustainable agriculture and how to care for the environment
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More than three million people in Colombia have been forced to flee their homes during decades of fighting between guerrilla groups, paramilitaries and the army - the highest number of displaced people in the world after Sudan [CARITAS Colombia/CAFOD]

Support our partners in their struggle

CAFOD has repeatedly asked the UK government to press the Colombian authorities to publicly defend human rights. Please support this call to action and the work of our partners in Colombia by emailing your MP now.

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