Mozambique: GCERF Calls for Integrated Response Against Terrorism

What the report says

The Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund (GCERF), a Geneva-based non-profit, is urging Mozambique to adopt a broader response to violent extremism in Cabo Delgado, the northern province that has faced years of insurgent attacks. The call was made in Maputo at a meeting involving the MASC Foundation, the Defense and Security Working Group of the Inclusive National Dialogue, and the Integrated Development Agency of the North (ADIN), according to AllAfrica’s source article from Agencia de Informação de Moçambique.

The report says participants argued that security operations remain necessary, but are not enough on their own. GCERF and others at the meeting said prevention, social inclusion, economic opportunity, and stronger community resilience should be central to national strategy. The discussion highlighted factors that can deepen vulnerability to radicalization, including unemployment, inequality, discrimination, corruption, marginalization, and lack of prospects, while also stressing that violent extremism is a complex problem that cannot be explained only by poverty.

The article also notes that ACLED data cited in the piece links the Cabo Delgado conflict to more than 6,600 deaths and over 2,400 violent events since the violence began, with most attributed to militants tied to the Islamic State. GCERF representative Manuel Sambo emphasized the role of civil society in strengthening social cohesion. The meeting outlined a three-level prevention approach covering vulnerable communities, people already showing signs of radicalization, and the reintegration of former militants, alongside decentralization and community involvement.