A transformational encounter. Listen to the stories. Experience the hope.
Mozambique is a country blessed with the kind of idyllic beaches you see on postcards - soft white sand, clear tuquoise water, and the obligatory palm trees.
But the reality for the more than 100,000 people living in the informal settlement of Manga Loforte in Beira is vastly different.
The settlement of Manga Loforte was formed during the Civil War and is built on a flood plain just ten metres above sea level. Mozambique receives heavy rains between November and April, and each year the community is flooded. A lack of clean water means they face enormous health and nutrition problems. The health clinics regularly see cases of malaria, cholera, diarrhoea and HIV. 42% of children in Manga Loforte suffer from chronic malnutrition and the infant mortality rate is extremely high at 1,000 deaths per 100,000 live births. And on top of all of this, years of civil war have left deep scars in families and communities.
Into this challenging environment, TEAR’s partner Oasis Mozambique is bringing dramatic transformation through valuing people and investing in relationships. Guided by a hope that transformation is always possible because the resurrection of Christ shows that even the darkest situation can be overcome.
We want to see people rich in faith, hope and love working together to transform society. This is a big vision - and we are seeing some exciting changes.
This trip will spend time with TEAR’s partner Oasis Mozambique. You will have the opportunity to visit and observe the work of their community health and empowerment project, as they serve over 5400 poor and vulnerable households in Beira Mozambique through some of these activities:
“People told us not to bother with savings groups in Manga Loforte”, says Armando Licoze, the Director of Oasis Mozambique. In a fractured community with little interaction between neighbours and no established trust, gathering a group of people together to save money, lend and repay it to one another is very difficult. The ‘experts’ told Oasis that others had failed and they would too. But Oasis’s savings groups, and their other community activities, are thriving. Why? Because long before Oasis started savings groups, they started building relationships.
The team is extraordinary, and so motivated by love for the people they work with.
These long and deep relationships, built on respect and trust, have enabled Oasis’s work to succeed where others have failed, and will enable the people of Manga Loforte to continue their own development trajectory into the future.
Come on this Supporter Trip with TEAR to Mozambique and hear these powerful stories first-hand. Be impacted by the personal testimonies of Oasis staff and volunteers, including Armando Licoze, Country Director of Oasis Mozambique for ten years and a young man who even at just the age of 18 ran a child protection project in a rural area of Mozambique, inspired by his faith and the love of Christ for the poor.
