Since its October general election, Mozambique has been experiencing spiraling, deadly political violence. Many Mozambicans, including the leading opposition candidate, saw the victory of the ruling Frelimo party as fraudulent. Frustration with decades of single-party dominance is mounting. Today, some Mozambicans are looking to international help to save their country, one of the poorest in the world, from a possible return to war. Time is of the essence for such diplomatic intervention. Given that few African countries receive as large a U.S. development commitment as Mozambique, the spotlight is on the United States.

Type: Analysis

While the “very volatile situation” in Mozambique is nominally in response to October’s presidential election, “it’s been several years in the making,” says USIP’s Thomas Sheehy, adding “what we’re seeing [there] is what we’re seeing elsewhere in Africa … a dissatisfaction with the ruling party.”

Type: Podcast

The White House’s recent release of 10-year stabilization and conflict prevention plans marks another milestone in U.S. efforts to implement the closely watched Global Fragility Act (GFA). The legislation received bipartisan support in the U.S. Congress before being signed into law by then President Donald Trump in 2019. It requires the U.S. government to develop a strategy for preventing the drivers of violent conflict and extremism, and to test a more coordinated, cost-effective and sustained U.S. approach in hot spots around the world.

Type: Analysis

The Biden administration has a full agenda planned for African heads of state arriving for the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit in Washington next week. While much of the summit will focus on economic development, peace and security challenges exist throughout Africa. One area where concerted leadership on both fronts could make a real difference is in northern Mozambique, where an African-led regional intervention has helped to stem — but not quell — an insurgency that has ravaged Mozambique’s resource-rich Cabo Delgado province.

Type: Analysis