Work with the community or go home: local engagement in Mozambique.

The Cabo Delgado province of Mozambique is currently the site of one of the most urgent internally displaced people crises in the world. Violent attacks by non-state armed groups in the north-east of the country and devastation by cyclone Kenneth in 2019 have displaced approximately 732,000 people. This population is now living in precarious conditions with limited access to basic health services. Approximately 36% of the health facilities in the hardest-hit districts have been destroyed and the northern section of the province is an effective 'no-go zone', outside the reach of humanitarian actors. The economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and limitations on travel and gatherings have also greatly complicated the humanitarian response. Here, Cardona-Fox et al argue that providing medical expertise and support to the national health system alone are not enough. Cultural awareness and effective engagement of the local population and institutions are essential to success.