Mozambique's forgotten crisis
How a disaster deepened the scars of conflict
Over half a million people in Mozambique have been directly affected by Cyclone Chido. This comes on top of the 1.3 million who already need critical assistance due to years of armed conflict.
15 December ...
Cyclone Chido made landfall early on Sunday, 15 December 2024, causing extensive damage across Mozambique's northern provinces of Nampula and Cabo Delgado.
According to weather monitoring reports, the cyclone was a category 4 when it made landfall. It brought strong winds with gusts up to 120–260 kilometres per hour, and heavy rainfall.
Houses and key infrastructures such as health facilities, schools and roads were partially or completely destroyed. Water and power supplies were severely disrupted, causing widespread communication blackouts.
In the aftermath of the cyclone, the death toll continues to rise, with 120 casualties reported so far by the authorities.
Chido is one of the worst cyclones Mozambique has faced and comes only a year after Cyclone Freddy caused significant devastation in Maputo and Zambezia provinces.
When two disasters collide
Unlike Cyclone Freddy, Chido specifically hit areas of Cabo Delgado province that have been severely affected by years of armed conflict.
Metuge district, for example, is Mozambique's second-largest host district for internally displaced people after Pemba. It is home to nearly 80,000 displaced individuals, according to the latest figures from the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
As many as 95 per cent of the homes were completely flattened
These thousands of displaced families had fled the armed conflict in neighbouring districts and settled in informal sites or within host communities. Here, severe food insecurity, makeshift homes, marginalisation, lack of income opportunities, and perpetuating cycles of poverty were already the baseline before the cyclone.
Metuge was one of the districts most intensely hit by Chido, with over 80,000 people affected and tens of thousands of homes destroyed. In some of the villages, as many as 95 per cent of the homes, mainly composed of bamboo and straw, were completely flattened. Families, mostly made up of women, elderly people and children, were left in unimaginable living conditions.
Photo: Alix Vaval/NRC
Photo: Alix Vaval/NRC
NRC's emergency shelter response
On 22 December, the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) in Mozambique provided critical shelter assistance to almost 4,000 people in the Metuge communities most affected by Cyclone Chido.
With the support of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and the USAID via the Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance, NRC has so far assisted 630 families in the village of Mieze. We have provided shelter kits, tool kits, roofing solutions and water purifiers to help people bounce back and recover a semblance of dignity as they navigate through this latest hardship.
“We are so happy that you are here. We have nothing left. We are tired,” were some of the most frequent words our teams heard that day.
These hard words still echo, and as grateful as NRC is that it was able to provide some relief to these families, we know that it barely scratches the surface.
These 630 families account for a mere 5 per cent of all those in need in Metuge district alone. The supplies available in the country will not even cover 20 per cent of the total number of families affected.
A rapid increase in funding is needed
Latest official numbers now indicate that more than half a million Mozambicans were directly affected by Cyclone Chido, with almost 120,000 homes completely destroyed. These numbers are only expected to grow as authorities and humanitarian actors continue to identify and assess the most affected areas.
NGOs, UN agencies and the Mozambican authorities are working around the clock to respond as quickly as possible. But their efforts are severely affected by existing emergency programmes that were set up to respond to years of armed conflict in the country, as well as a dramatic downturn in humanitarian funding.
“We need to act fast and we need more support”
In the backdrop of Cyclone Chido is a national humanitarian response plan that is only 40 per cent funded, and a humanitarian community with limited resources to respond to this new disaster. There is a clear need for a rapid increase in funding to support humanitarian efforts in Mozambique.
“People have been telling us how terrible their conditions are and how little they can do about it. We don’t have enough at all for the response needed and more rain is coming. We need to act fast and we need more support,” says NRC's Country Director in Mozambique, Ulrika Blom.
Photo: Alix Vaval/NRC
Photo: Alix Vaval/NRC
Conditions are set to worsen
Since 2017, Northern Mozambique has been contending with armed hostilities that have caused millions to flee their homes with only the clothes on their backs and the few belongings they were able to grab.
Over half a million people remain displaced, scattered across the various districts of Cabo Delgado province. The majority have found refuge among relatives and friends who were already extremely vulnerable and living a precarious existence.
As is always the case in humanitarian crises, women and children are the most affected and represent about 80 per cent of those displaced by the conflict.
Cyclone Chido has devastated already-vulnerable communities and urgent assistance needs to be deployed immediately. With heavy rains expected during the country's wet season between November and April, conditions will only get worse:
- Water-borne diseases are likely to spread. Cholera is already present in Nampula province, which was also hit by the cyclone.
- The areas most affected by Chido were already facing severe levels of food insecurity, and malnutrition will only increase the longer it takes to respond.
- Protection risks will grow if people do not have safe shelters.
Resilience in the face of hardship
We have had the opportunity to talk to many people and hear the stories of what they went through during those terrifying six hours on Sunday 15 December.
We have seen our staff severely affected by the cyclone, and yet still presenting to work at 8.00 on Monday morning to start planning the emergency response. Some had spent the previous night without a roof over their heads.
We have seen people looking at their roofless homes in the early hours of Sunday, once the winds had subsided. We have seen them pick up their fences, reach for their hammers and tools, and sweep off debris from what was left of their home. For some, this was probably not the first time they had to start all over.
It has been humbling and inspiring to see the strength of Mozambicans in the face of such a continuous string of hardships.
We urge the donor community to increase its funding towards the growing humanitarian crisis. And we call on the world not to forget about Mozambique.
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Photo: Alix Vaval/NRC
Photo: Alix Vaval/NRC
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