Collaboration between the Dutch water sector and Beira
For over 10 years the Dutch water sector has been working together with the municipality of Beira. This strategic port city is one of the biggest cities of Mozambique. Like Rotterdam, the city is extremely vulnerable for sea-level rise and flooding. To become more resilient as a city and community, the municipality and the Dutch government and water sector worked together on a strategic sustainable development plan: Masterplan 2035. The plan focusses on water management, economic prosperity, building resilient residential area’s and strengthen the municipal organization. Different Dutch programs, like Partners for Water (RVO), Develop2build and DRIVE (Invest International) and other Dutch governmental organizations like the Dutch Embassy and the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs are supporting the implementation of this plan.
Masterplan 2035 residential area Maraza
Working towards a climate proof city
In Rotterdam the delegation visited the Global Centre of Adaptation (GCA) and the city hall. The GCA is promoting climate adaptation measures and also focuses on Africa. GCA has own funding and works with partners like AfDB, WB, UN, IMF, European Bank. A concrete result of the visit is that a working group with GCA, Rotterdam, Netherlands Government and Beira will be set up to work on ideas where GCA can give support in the efforts of Beira to become a climate resilient city.
Mayor Aboutaleb from Dutch’ port city Rotterdam also welcomed the delegation. He pointed out that the required energy transition could offer opportunities to a port city like Beira and offered support from the Rotterdam Municipality in the exchange of knowledge on urban climate adaption. The delegation learned about the climate change effects for Rotterdam and their adaptation program towards a climate proof city: ‘Rotterdam Weatherwise 2030’. Through the program, the municipality gained a lot of knowledge on asset management and they are willing to share this knowledge.
Visit Rotterdam mayor Aboutaleb
Signing a MoU for affordable housing
An important outcome of the visit was a signed MoU (memorandum of understanding) between the Municipality of Beira and Empowa at the Institute of Housing and Urban Development Studies. The signed MoU is to express the cooperation for the Maraza 25.000 houses project and to realize that climate-resilient and affordable housing becomes available for Beira’s middle-income citizens.
MoU signed between the Municipality of Beira and Empowa
The importance of social inclusiveness
While visiting the Markermeerdijk, the delegation learned about the intensive stakeholder management process and the innovative approach to collaborate with the private sector that was needed for the dikes reconstruction. The need of social inclusiveness was further emphasized during a Social Inclusiveness symposium, were instruments to increase social inclusiveness in terms of community and stakeholders in project design were presented. Mayor Albano highlighted the need to include the community on governmental plans and to activate them to be an active stakeholder: “The citizen has to sense that the canal does not belong to the municipality, but it belongs to the population and works to keep the municipality safe”.
Workshop social inclusiveness