Building the Zambezi Bridge in central Mozambique has not only been "a feat of technical engineering", said a statement released by Save the Children (SC) on 29 July, valuable lessons about the negative impact of huge infrastructure projects on vulnerable communities have also been learnt.
"In response to concerns raised by members of nearby communities at the start of the construction, it has also been accompanied by mechanisms of social protection for vulnerable families that have also been impressive."
There will be much to celebrate when the bridge linking the north to the south of the country is officially opened on 1 August, making it possible for trucks, buses and cars to cross the Zambezi River in a matter of minutes instead of having to wait several days for a dilapidated ferry system.
At a price
When construction of the new 2.5km bridge, the second longest in Africa, began in 2006, Caia in Sofala Province and Chimuara in Zambezia Province - the villages on opposite sides of the river - worried about the possible negative impact of thousands of migrant workers and heavy construction machinery suddenly arriving.
"With money to spend and without their wives and families, these workers often engaged in sexual relations with young girls and because of poverty and economic deprivation, certain families colluded and sometimes encouraged these relationships," Chris McIvor, SC advocacy director in Mozambique, told IRIN.
The communities of Caia and Chimuara had already suffered as a result of being located on the main route connecting Mozambique's 10 provinces, national highway number one (EN1): government figures put HIV prevalence at about 20 percent in both.
"With HIV/AIDS such a huge risk, poor families can be left in an even worse position than if the infrastructure project had not materialized. Girls in Zambezia [Province], for example, told us how they had been abandoned by their 'new boyfriends' the moment they announced their pregnancy," McIvor said.
Based on its experience of other infrastructure projects in Mozambique, where child abuse and exploitation had occurred, SC conducted a study, The Zambezi Bridge - What Needs to Be Done, and approached the government, donors and the bridge construction company, which led to a programme for social protection.
Expensive lessons
McIvor said large infrastructure projects were bound to be part of Mozambique's ongoing development drive - road, bridge and railway projects were underway in many parts of the country - and the government, private sector and donors would be well advised to learn from the Zambezi Bridge experience.
"Arising from our positive experience of what took place during the Zambezi Bridge construction, we also believe that the social problems that arise on the back of these projects can largely be avoided," said the SC statement.
It was crucial to involve community members, including the children. "Children are excellent advocates among themselves, so if you convince some children to avoid certain risks - like frequenting bars and discos if they are underage - they are very influential in convincing others, McIvor noted.
Buy-in by local authorities and influential people, like the police, community leaders, headmasters and teachers, helped ensure that child abuse and exploitation were not tolerated.
It was also essential to offer viable economic opportunities to marginalized community members, "so that they are not drawn into the sex trade or exploitative labour because they are too poor to withstand these pressures," McIvor said.
The SC statement recommended "training managers and staff of [contracting] companies ... on their social responsibilities ... and promoting their adherence to codes of conduct that regulate their behaviour and interactions with local people" as essential in reducing the negative impact of construction projects.
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"In response to concerns raised by members of nearby communities at the start of the construction, it has also been accompanied by mechanisms of social protection for vulnerable families that have also been impressive."
There will be much to celebrate when the bridge linking the north to the south of the country is officially opened on 1 August, making it possible for trucks, buses and cars to cross the Zambezi River in a matter of minutes instead of having to wait several days for a dilapidated ferry system.
 With
money to spend and without their wives and families, these workers
often engaged in sexual relations with young girls and because of
poverty and economic deprivation |
When construction of the new 2.5km bridge, the second longest in Africa, began in 2006, Caia in Sofala Province and Chimuara in Zambezia Province - the villages on opposite sides of the river - worried about the possible negative impact of thousands of migrant workers and heavy construction machinery suddenly arriving.
"With money to spend and without their wives and families, these workers often engaged in sexual relations with young girls and because of poverty and economic deprivation, certain families colluded and sometimes encouraged these relationships," Chris McIvor, SC advocacy director in Mozambique, told IRIN.
The communities of Caia and Chimuara had already suffered as a result of being located on the main route connecting Mozambique's 10 provinces, national highway number one (EN1): government figures put HIV prevalence at about 20 percent in both.
"With HIV/AIDS such a huge risk, poor families can be left in an even worse position than if the infrastructure project had not materialized. Girls in Zambezia [Province], for example, told us how they had been abandoned by their 'new boyfriends' the moment they announced their pregnancy," McIvor said.
Based on its experience of other infrastructure projects in Mozambique, where child abuse and exploitation had occurred, SC conducted a study, The Zambezi Bridge - What Needs to Be Done, and approached the government, donors and the bridge construction company, which led to a programme for social protection.
Expensive lessons
McIvor said large infrastructure projects were bound to be part of Mozambique's ongoing development drive - road, bridge and railway projects were underway in many parts of the country - and the government, private sector and donors would be well advised to learn from the Zambezi Bridge experience.
"Arising from our positive experience of what took place during the Zambezi Bridge construction, we also believe that the social problems that arise on the back of these projects can largely be avoided," said the SC statement.
It was crucial to involve community members, including the children. "Children are excellent advocates among themselves, so if you convince some children to avoid certain risks - like frequenting bars and discos if they are underage - they are very influential in convincing others, McIvor noted.
Buy-in by local authorities and influential people, like the police, community leaders, headmasters and teachers, helped ensure that child abuse and exploitation were not tolerated.
It was also essential to offer viable economic opportunities to marginalized community members, "so that they are not drawn into the sex trade or exploitative labour because they are too poor to withstand these pressures," McIvor said.
The SC statement recommended "training managers and staff of [contracting] companies ... on their social responsibilities ... and promoting their adherence to codes of conduct that regulate their behaviour and interactions with local people" as essential in reducing the negative impact of construction projects.
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This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
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