It had all started with the desire of Universidade Católica de Moçambique (UCM) to improve SRHR knowledge and skills, and to reduce gender-based violence and gender inequality. In 2018 they conducted an extensive needs assessment among students. The outcomes were used to build a robust training programme with a consortium of Mozambican and Dutch partners working together to strengthen SRHR capacity.   

“Aidsfonds’ role was to provide training and consultancy for the production of behavior change campaigns, sexual health videos and e-learnings. It was for the first time that our expertise on young people’s behavioural change interventions in the Netherlands was used in an international context”, tells Erwin Fisser, behavioural change expert at Aidsfonds – Soa Aids Nederland. “Most special to me is that we helped the Mozambican partners to do it themselves. Not by telling them how it should be done, but by sharing our own failures and learnings and above all by letting them substantiate decisions made. Over a period of time even the more timid people really grew into influential voices. That was awesome to see!”  

Partners in the consortium for website development are Associação Coalizão da Juventude Moçambicana (COALIZÃO), Universidade Católica de Moçambique (UCM) from Mozambique, WitsRHI from South Africa, Maastricht University and Aidsfonds in the Netherlands. The project will be implemented under the NUFFIC Orange Knowledge Programme funded by the Netherlands’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Partners in the SRHR capacity strengthening project have been Universidade Católica de Moçambique (UCM) and Instituto Superior de Ciências de Saúde (ISCICA), Maastricht University, Dutch Royal Tropical Insitute (KIT) and Aidsfonds.