Mozambique: EU concerned for families not rehoused after cyclone Idai – ambassador

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Mozambique: EU concerned for families not rehoused after cyclone Idai – ambassador

3:15 CAT | 19 Oct 2020

File photo: Lusa

The European Union’s ambassador to Mozambique has in an interview with Lusa warned of the vulnerability of families who have not yet been able to rebuild their homes following the passage of a cyclone in the centre of the country over a year and a half ago.

“Our concern lies with those families who are still in temporary places and resettlement areas,” António Sanchez-Benedito said after a visit to central Mozambique. “This should be our priority.”

Cylcone Idai, which swept through the region in March 2019, claimed 604 lives and affected over 1.8 million people in some way.

The post-cyclone reconstruction programme, which foresees the restoration and construction of more than 15,000 houses, prioritises “low-income pregnant women, orphaned children and heads of households, the elderly and the chronically ill,” the ambassador noted. He expressed satisfaction with the progress so far, but stressed the need to ensure that the new buildings are resilient, taking into account the country’s vulnerability to natural disasters.

“I would like the process to be more flexible, but reconstruction is a long process and needs a number of guarantees,” he said.

According to official figures, the EU has pledged a total of €200 million to the parts of Mozambique hit by cyclones last year, in addition to providing emergency support budgeted at €19 million in their immediate aftermath.

Of the €200 million, some €70 million have already been made available for ongoing projects and it is expected that in the coming months the EU will sign two agreements with the government on the disbursement of the remaining €130 million. Of that sum, Sanchez-Benedito said, €100 million will be in the form of aid and the other half as soft loans, with the aim being to spend the money in different areas.

As of July this year, according to data from Mozambique’s Office of Post-Cyclone Reconstruction, around $100 million (€85 million) had been made available from various partners.

“There are already results in terms of infrastructure,” said António Sanchez-Benedito. “Markets, schools and housing have been rehabilitated. But there is still a long way to go because reconstruction is a long road.”

On 31 May and 1 June 2019, Mozambique’s government hosted an international conference of donors in the city of Beira to mobilise resources for reconstruction. It requested aid of some $3.2 billion but obtained pledge of support worth $1.2 billion, to be disbursed as the respective projects are validated.

On this #DRRday, 13 Oct: #Mozambique‘s local government in Sofala, @UNDP, #EU & dev partners gathered to inaugurate a rural market in Savane resettlement site where 1,191 #cyclone-affected 🌀people will be benefited. Resilient constructions follow #BuildBackBetter standards. pic.twitter.com/FMWftBQbm4

— UNDP in Mozambique (@UNDPMozambique) October 13, 2020