Mozambique: Casualties from bad weather rise to 44 – Government

Login

Register

http://www.clubofmozambique.com/

Mozambique: Casualties from bad weather rise to 44 – Government

1:03 CAT | 24 Jan 2017

Lusa (File photo)

The number of deaths due to bad weather in Mozambique has risen from 40 to 44 and more than 79,000 people have been affected by rains since October, a spokesman for the Council of Ministers said on Friday.

Speaking after the first session of the Council of Ministers in Maputo, Mouzinho Saíde said that since the beginning of the current rainy season, rains and strong winds in some parts of the country had destroyed 8,162 houses and left another 21,000 partially damaged.

“The Government has triggered all mechanisms for the assistance of the population and, to date, there has been no record of problems with accommodation and food assistance of the people affected,” the Cabinet spokesman said.

The government, Saíde continued, had approved the Reduction of Risk and Disaster Indicators Framework at yesterday’s meeting to mitigate the impact of cyclical natural disasters in the country through effective monitoring measures.

“Given the vulnerability of the country to natural disasters, the government has been introducing reforms and implementing strategies to mitigate disaster risk,” said Saíde, adding that the Indicators for Reduction of Risk and Disaster are based the Economic and Social Plans of each sector, among which health, education and agriculture stand out as those most affected areas by floods and bad weather.

Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi was present at the Cabinet meeting yesterday and urged the immediate removal of people from places considered at risk in the regions affected by the winds and heavy rains in Mozambique, saying that the government’s priority should be to save lives.

“We should not negotiate this [the withdrawal of the populations]; people should leave these places,” the head of state said.

Nyusi said that the government should take advantage of the knowledge of local leaders to improve the assistance strategies.

“We have a responsibility as a state,” Nyusi said, pointing out that the availability of food and medical care were at the heart of all aid strategies.

Last week, the Mozambican authorities issued an orange alert following the rain and strong winds that hit the provinces of Maputo, Gaza, Inhambane and Nampula, affecting more than 18,000 thousand people since the beginning of the year.

The orange alert occurs in parallel with the red alert, which remains in force for the more than 1.5 million people affected by drought and food insecurity over the past year.

Source: Lusa