The African Union (AU) on Wednesday handed the Mozambican government financial support of $100,000 for humanitarian assistance to the victims of armed violence in the northern province of Cabo Delgado.

"We want to emphasize that the African Union is also prepared to provide its full support through humanitarian assistance. That is why we are handing over $100,000 today to help Mozambique," said AU Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Bankole Adeoye.

Adeoye was speaking during a meeting with the Mozambican Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Verónica Macamo.

On the occasion, the AU Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security said that the organization will transmit its experience and knowledge to the Mozambican government forces, to the Rwandan and Southern African military missions fighting the armed groups in Cabo Delgado.

"We want to bring our experience and technical capacity to Mozambique so that together we can fight terrorism," said Bankole Adeoye.

Africa, he continued, "is being invaded by terrorists and terrorism is gaining ground."

In this regard, he advocated the adoption and implementation of solutions tailored to the security challenges facing the continent.

"We came here to find African solutions, to solve African problems," he stressed.

Bankole Adeoye said that an AU mission will visit Mozambique this month to assess what kind of support the organization will provide to the country in the fight against terrorism.

The mission will travel to Cabo Delgado province and meet the ministers of National Defense, Jaime Neto, of the Interior, Amade Miquidade, and the president of the National Institute for Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (INGD), Luísa Meque.

He will also meet with the representative of the military mission of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) in Mozambique, Mpho Molomo.

For her part, Mozambique's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Veronica Macamo, stressed the importance of AU support in combating terrorism, noting the transnational nature of this phenomenon.

"We see terrorism as a universal challenge against which all countries must combine efforts and join synergies," Verónica Macamo said.

Violent extremism, he continued, must be eradicated from the continent.

The Mozambican diplomatic chief noted that the presence of the AU Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security is also an opportunity for the Mozambican authorities to reinforce the continent's appeal for support for the country's candidacy to become a non-permanent member of the United Nations (UN) Security Council.

Lusa Agency