Africa-Press – Mozambique. The Institute for Multiparty Democracy (IMD), a Mozambican non-governmental organisation (NGO), has warned that Renamo’s Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) process has been marked by “ineffective” administrative procedures, with “critical” issues remaining.
“The ongoing reintegration process, which covers 5,221 former Renamo combatants across the country, has been characterised by a transition from military to civilian life, with a focus on a pension scheme. However, this process has faced several challenges,” said the IMD in an analysis released on Wednesday, of the sixth anniversary of the Maputo Peace Agreement, which led to the closure of the last base of the armed wing of the Mozambican National Resistance (Renamo), the main opposition party, on 15 June 2023.
Despite “remarkable” progress in this reintegration experience, such as the definition of pensions for 95% of ex-combatants by 2024, “critical issues remain”, the document reads.
“By April 2025, only 4,536 ex-combatants were receiving pensions, which means that there were still hundreds of beneficiaries not covered, including 298 whom the government reported difficulties in locating,” it explains.
According to the NGO, obstacles such as the slowness and costs associated with applying for benefits, as well as the disparity in the figures allocated, have generated “frustration” among beneficiaries, and the adverse context in which reintegration is taking place, “marked by factors such as terrorism in the north of the country, post-election conflicts, climate crises and the high cost of living”, reinforce the “urgent need for a broader and more integrated approach to the implementation of the disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration process”.
“Support must be tailored to local realities, ensuring community involvement in the planning and implementation of activities (…). This can help mitigate resentment and mistrust, promoting social cohesion,” it says.
For the organisation, sustainable reintegration must go beyond the economic dimension, incorporating political, social and security aspects: “This sixth anniversary is therefore an opportunity to renew the commitment to peace and implement a more effective and inclusive reintegration programme”.
The Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration process, which began in 2018, covers 5,221 former guerrilla fighters from Renamo, Mozambique’s largest opposition party, including 257 women, and ended in June 2023 with the closure of the Vunduzi base, Renamo’s last, located in the Gorongosa region of the central province of Sofala.
That base closed 30 years and eight months after the end of the Mozambican civil war, and the ceremony marked the end of the demobilisation process for guerrilla fighters who remained in bases in remote areas and began surrendering their weapons in 2019.
The closure of the last base is part of the Peace and National Reconciliation Agreement signed between the Government, the Mozambique Liberation Front (Frelimo) and Renamo in August 2019, the third signed between the parties, the first two having been violated and resulting in armed confrontation following the contestation of the election results by the then main opposition party.
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