Mozambique: Displaced children’s needs in Cabo Delgado ‘far outweigh’ support available – NGO

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Mozambique: Displaced children’s needs in Cabo Delgado ‘far outweigh’ support available – NGO

10:55 CAT | 16 Mar 2021

File photo: Lusa

The needs of displaced children in Cabo Delgado, northern Mozambique, “far outweigh the resources available to support them” and they are often the target of violence, the humanitarian organisation Save the Children warned on Tuesday.

“Aid is desperately needed, but few donors have prioritised assistance for those who have lost everything and for their children,” at a time when the world is also dealing with Covid-19, said Chance Briggs, the organisation’s Mozambique director, quoted in a statement.

“While the world was focused on Covid-19, the crisis in Cabo Delgado grew bigger and was downplayed,” he added.

Save the Children noted that “almost a million people face severe hunger” as a direct result of the wave of displaced people caused by the armed conflict in the region, including displaced people and host communities.

As a reflection of the country’s age pyramid, about half of those affected by the violence are under the age of 18, often witnessing death and destruction and themselves being targeted by the parties to the conflict.

“All parties must ensure that children are never targeted. They must respect international humanitarian and human rights law and take all necessary actions to minimise civilian harm, including ending indiscriminate and disproportionate attacks on children,” Briggs added.

“The reports of attacks on children disturb us deeply. Our team was moved to tears hearing the stories of suffering told by mothers in IDP camps”.

The armed violence in Cabo Delgado is causing a humanitarian crisis, with more than two thousand deaths and 670,000 people displaced, without housing or food.

Some of the rebel incursions were claimed by the ‘jihadist’ group Islamic State between June 2019 and November 2020, but the origin of the attacks remains under debate.

The insecurity situation has led oil company Total to reduce the number of workers and slow down work on the gas megaproject in the region until a security perimeter is guaranteed by the Mozambican Defence and Security Forces (FDS).

However, the project is still expected to start exporting liquefied natural gas in 2024.

Source: Lusa