By Johanna Mitscherlich
Almost two decades ago, Alejandro (38) and Rosina (34) met at a disco in a village close to Funhalouro, in the south of Mozambique. “I saw him and fell in love at first sight,” Rosina says with a big smile on her face. “We wanted to start our own family and live a good life together.” The couple has since raised seven children. Alejandro Junior, the eldest child, is 15 years old, and their youngest, Nelson, is just one year. Alejandro and Rosina are both farmers, and during their first years of marriage could live well off maize, beans and other vegetables they harvested in their field. In more recent years, however, the couple has struggled. “There was not enough rain and the weather changed constantly. We could harvest enough to survive, but could not sell anything anymore to buy clothes or other things we need,” explains Alejandro.
Alejandro, (38) and Rosina (34) have seven children: Alejandro (15), Ana (13), Dito (10), Beleisto (8), Simil (6), Argelica (4) and little 1-year old Nelson. None of the children is going to school. (Photo: Johanna Mitscherlich)
Mozambique is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to natural disasters, and climate change is exacerbating the already dire situation. Last year, Mozambique was hit by the worst drought in 35 years, which has made an already difficult situation even worse. An unusually strong El Niño caused rains and harvests to fail for the second time, and prices in local markets have skyrocketed. Like two million people in Mozambique, Rosina and Alejandro are now without a secure food supply and receive food assistance from CARE and other organizations. The Ministry of Agriculture estimates that 500,000 farmers are currently affected by the drought.
Alejandro started a small business, building and selling baskets out of wood. He now gets up as early as 2 am to braid the thin pieces of bark. During the day, he searches for new material and tries to sell his product. His day usually ends at 8 pm. Most weeks, he is only able to sell 1-2 baskets for around 40 Meticais, approximately 60 cents, hardly enough to buy food for a family of nine. “We receive food assistance from CARE. I don’t know what we would do without it,” says Rosina. A few months ago, they also received seeds to plant in their fields. “We were so hungry, we ate the seeds as they were. Ideally we would have been able to plant them, but with no other options we simply couldn’t wait any longer. At that time, we had not eaten for days.”
The family lives in a tiny house made from wooden sticks with a straw roof. They have no running water, no toilet and no electricity. The school, health post and nearest shops are three and a half hours walking distance away. None of the children have ever seen a school from the inside. The family does not have enough money to pay for transportation and school material. Sometimes, they meet up with the neighbors for support, and once a week a CARE-volunteer visits them. More than 300 volunteers, themselves struggling with the drought and food insecurity, counsel and advise families in their communities and assess children’s nutritional status. They provide vital information on health care and hygiene. “I am very grateful for this support,” says Rosina. “The volunteer taught us about some nutritious wild leaves and fruits we can eat, that are especially healthy for small children like Nelson. For me it is important to be able to learn more about nutrition and health, and how we can improve our diet despite the drought. Our family needs to be stronger than the drought. CARE’s support helps us to get through this hardship.”