In a decisive move to stem fragility and ignite inclusive growth in conflict-ravaged northern Mozambique, the African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved a $17 million grant for the Resilient Investment for Socio-Economic Empowerment, Peace, and Security (RISE-PS) project an ambitious, private-sector-driven initiative that places African entrepreneurship at the heart of long-term recovery.
With a total project value of $28 million, the initiative seeks to build economic resilience in Cabo Delgado, a province where insurgency-linked violence has displaced over one million people and destroyed nearly 5,000 microenterprises since 2017.
The RISE-PS project will directly create 24,000 jobs, earmarking 60% for youth aged 18–35 and 50% for women a powerful acknowledgment of the entrepreneurial spirit that must underpin peacebuilding and regional transformation. Altogether, over 100,000 Mozambicans stand to benefit from a combination of employment, business grants and infrastructure rehabilitation.
“This is about more than economic recovery it’s about giving young people a reason to believe in their future,” said Babatunde Omilola, Manager for Human Capital, Youth and Skills Development at AfDB Southern Africa. “By unlocking youth potential through skills and decent work, we see them as agents of peace and economic stabilisation.”
A Blueprint for Resilient Investment
At the core of RISE-PS is a Peace and Security Investment Hub, led by the Northern Integrated Development Agency (ADIN). It will act as a public-private coordination platform to drive investment, streamline development planning, and restore critical infrastructure with community participation.
The project brings together TotalEnergies, ExxonMobil, and public development agencies including Germany’s BMZ and the UNDP, creating a hybrid financing model. AfDB’s grant is disbursed through its Transition Support Facility, which targets states in transition.
Key elements include:
- Rehabilitation of 150 community assets, including schools, youth centres, health posts, markets, and water systems generating employment for 4,500 vulnerable youth and women.
- Training for over 9,200 individuals in market-oriented vocational skills.
- Grant funding to 2,000 women- and youth-led enterprises to restart businesses lost in the conflict.
- Capacity upgrades for 5,400 microenterprises.
- Creation of a climate-smart SME village at Afungi Industrial Hub, led by MozParks, with facilities for 100 growth-stage SMEs.
- Internships for 1,055 youth through energy sector partnerships, targeting 70% permanent job placement.
Youth Entrepreneurship as a Tool for Peace
Cabo Delgado’s 25% youth unemployment and the fact that 35% of young women are neither employed nor in education or training, present a glaring challenge. However, the project’s conflict-sensitive design is rooted in data: nearly 40% of young men who joined armed movements did so due to lack of economic opportunity.
By elevating entrepreneurship as both a means and an end, RISE-PS follows a clear logic: job creation, local ownership, and skills development are the currency of lasting peace.
“Letting communities choose which infrastructure gets rebuilt is not symbolic it’s structural,” said Macmillan Anyanwu, AfDB Acting Country Manager for Mozambique. “It ensures development is anchored in real needs, not donor priorities.”
Policy-Aligned and Future-Focused
RISE-PS is aligned with Mozambique’s National Development Strategy (2025–2044), AU Agenda 2063, and the AfDB’s Jobs for Youth in Africa Strategy, which aims to create 25 million jobs by 2025. The project also supports SDGs 1 (No Poverty), 4 (Quality Education), 5 (Gender Equality), and 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth).
Implementation begins September 1, 2025 and runs through August 2029. The project also strengthens ADIN’s institutional capacity, preparing it to play a larger coordination role in the development of Mozambique’s north a region home to 11.6 million people.
Following a notable improvement in security and a reduction in internally displaced persons from over one million to 635,000, AfDB sees this moment as pivotal.
“There is now a window of opportunity to catalyze entrepreneurship and rebuild livelihoods,” said Omilola. “For investors seeking impact, Mozambique is signalling readiness.”
