CPLP: Ministers appeal to international community for humanitarian aid for northern Mozambique – Watch

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CPLP: Ministers appeal to international community for humanitarian aid for northern Mozambique – Watch

7:42 CAT | 09 Dec 2020

File photo: Lusa

The Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP) on Wednesday made a “strong appeal” to the international community to provide humanitarian assistance to Mozambique because of the violence in Cabo Delgado province.

The appeal was made during the meeting of the Council of Ministers of the CPLP, which met by videoconference, and was presided over from Praia by Luís Filipe Tavares, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Cabo Verde, the country holding the pro-tempore presidency of the Portuguese-speaking community.

“We also made a strong appeal to the international community to provide humanitarian assistance to Mozambique, which now needs the collaboration of neighbouring states, but also of the entire international community because the humanitarian crisis there is very complicated. The CPLP is in solidarity with Mozambique,” the Cape Verdean minister said.

Luís Filipe Tavares said that the position of the heads of diplomacy of the CPLP had been taken after an intervention by Mozambique’s counterpart, Verónica Macamo Dlhovo, who spoke of the situation in Cabo Delgado.

“We have expressed our political support and solidarity with Mozambique in this situation, which is a terrible human tragedy. We will continue to follow the situation very closely”, he assured.

Asked about other concrete support from the CPLP, he reaffirmed that the most important thing at the moment is political-diplomatic support but assured that the countries will consult to see what other aid they can give to Mozambique.

“But the most important thing at the moment is the political support and mobilisation of the entire international community for the Mozambican cause, for what is happening in Cabo Delgado. And it is already a very big effort”, said Luís Filipe Tavares.

This was the first time that the CPLP had made a public and formal statement on the attacks and violence affecting Cabo Delgado province in northern Mozambique.

Mozambique is facing an armed insurgency with links to the ‘jihadist’ Islamic state group in the northern Cabo Delgado province.

The violence is causing a humanitarian crisis with over 2,000 deaths and 560,000 displaced people, without housing or food, mainly concentrated in the provincial capital, Pemba.

“Reaffirmation of Cooperation in the CPLP in the context of the Covid-19 Pandemic” was the theme of what was the first meeting of the Council of Ministers after the beginning of the pandemic.

The Council of Ministers is composed of the Foreign and Foreign Ministers of the nine CPLP Member States.

The CPLP includes Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Mozambique, Portugal, São Tomé and Príncipe and East Timor.

Source: Lusa