Emergency Support after Flooding in Mozambique
Peace Winds teams in Mozambique are conducting emergency needs assessments and distributing supplies in the wake of devastating floods that struck the country in January. Prolonged heavy rains through December and January caused rivers to overflow, and some 800,000 people have now been impacted. Many people lost everything when their homes and possessions were washed away. Others have also lost their source of income due to damage to farmland and livestock, making it difficult for them to make ends meet.
Mozambique’s southern Gaza Province was the hardest hit, and many aid organizations have responded there after learning that nearly 400,000 people were affected. Peace Winds is instead focusing on support for central Sofala Province, which also suffered heavy damage but is receiving less aid.
Teams recently surveyed two evacuation shelters in Buzi District, one of which was also supported by Peace Winds after the 2021 cyclone. Although food aid is reaching the shelter, there is only enough for evacuees to eat one meal per day. Women and children share a single large tent while men sleep outside under the trees.
There are also growing concerns about water and hygiene. One of the community’s wells was damaged, reducing the water supply, so the arrival of nearly 1,000 evacuees has led to a serious shortage. There are only two toilets, and malaria is common amid a lack of mosquito nets.
In addition to requests for food and basic supplies, evacuees are requesting farming tools and shelter kits so they can begin to rebuild and escape the routine of relying on aid.
Peace Winds continues to work with the government and other aid organizations in distributing food, hygiene kits, and other supplies, and working to ensure that gaps in aid can be filled according to what communities need most.
