UNICEF warns of “volatile and unpredictable” situation in northern Mozambique

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UNICEF warns of “volatile and unpredictable” situation in northern Mozambique

9:15 CAT | 04 Jun 2025

FILE - For illustration purposes only. [File photo: Lusa]

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has warned that the security situation in northern Mozambique remains “volatile and unpredictable,” especially in Cabo Delgado, a province that has been facing an armed insurgency since 2017.

The security situation in the north of the country, particularly in Cabo Delgado, remains “volatile and unpredictable,” reads the UNICEF Mozambique ‘Humanitarian Situation Report No. 4, April 2025′.

In April, “security incidents by the non-state armed groups (NSAG) were reported,” according to a report from this United Nations agency, issued on 30 May 2025 and consulted yesterday by Lusa.

According to UNICEF, the security incidents include” roadblocks, abduction, clashes with security forces and looting in Ancuabe, Mocimboa da Praia, Macomia and Nangade districts in Cabo Delgado province”.

Meanwhile, in a separate statement issued on Tuesday (3 June 2025), UNICEF recalls the “recent attack on Magaia village, in the District of Muidumbe, on 11 May, in which it is reported that three girls aged 17, 14 and 12 were killed and eight others, including six girls and two boys, were abducted,” in “a tragic reminder of the dangers children face in conflict-affected areas”.

Yesterday, in a ‘Statement on Increasing Violence Against and Abduction of Children in Cabo Delgado’,, UNICEF Mozambique expresses its concern with “the rising trend in reports of abduction, recruitment, and use of children by non-state armed groups, which are serious violations of children’s rights”.

Since October 2017, Cabo Delgado, a northern province rich in gas, has been facing an armed rebellion, which has caused thousands of deaths and a humanitarian crisis, with more than a million people displaced.

In April, these groups also attacked a reserve in the neighbouring province of Niassa, resulting in at least two deaths.

“Moreover, in April, the NSAG carried out attacks in Niassa Reserve on the bank of the Cabo Delgado and Mariri Environmental Centre in the Mecula district of Niassa province, resulting in casualties , theft and as well as destruction the camp and the park’s aircraft,” reads UNICEF’s ‘Humanitarian Situation Report No. 4, April 2025‘.

The UN agency explains that this “marks the second major attack in Mecula district, Niassa province since 2021 and led to the displacement of over 2,000 people – 55 percent of whom were children”.

“The displaced population sought refuge in a school and with host communities in Mecula district headquarters. The most urgent humanitarian needs reported were food, shelter, and non-food items ,” reads the UNICEF Mozambique report,

Source: Lusa