Mozambique: IDPs skyrocket after Mocimboa – Deutsche Welle

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Mozambique: IDPs skyrocket after Mocimboa – Deutsche Welle

3:28 CAT | 20 Aug 2020

“Mueda, at the moment, has thousands of people displaced from Mocímboa da Praia. [The district] is, at the moment, in the hands of the insurgents” the Bishop of Pemba said, quoted by Deutsche Welle in an interview published on Wednesday (August 19). The Bishop assures that humanitarian aid efforts are well coordinated.

The port of Mocímboa da Praia was reportedly captured on Tuesday of last week (11.08) by attackers linked to the Islamic State, according to the terrorist group’s propaganda, and the Bishop of Pemba, Dom Luiz Fernando Lisboa, says almost the entire district is in their hands.

This leaves northern Mozambique grappling with rocketing numbers of internally displaced persons. Thousands have fled to Mueda and other places of safety in Cabo Delgado, such as Montepuez and Pemba.

Regarding support for the displaced, the bishop has told DW Africa that the provision of support is coordinated, including with the government, but the list of needs is still vast.

DW Africa: Did the taking of Mocímboa da Praia by the insurgents last week represent an increase in internally displaced persons in the secure areas of Cabo Delgado?

Luiz Fernando Lisboa (LL): Yes, absolutely. The population of Cabo Delgado has been fleeing for a long time because Mocímboa da Praia has been attacked twice very severely. This last time, they [the insurgents] took over almost the entire district. The population fled through the bush, and many people arrived in Mueda.

At the moment, Mueda has thousands of people displaced from Mocímboa da Praia, just as many others have fled to Palma. And many others passed through Mueda on their way to other districts like Montepuez and Pemba. The population of Mocímboa da Praia is spread throughout the province. Mocímboa da Praia is currently in the hands of the insurgents.

DW Africa: The mobilisation of support for internally displaced persons is clearly increasing. Do you know if there is inter-institutional coordination with the state’s involvement, aiming at a more balanced and adjusted distribution?

LL: All the distribution work of international and local organisations has been done in coordination with the government. Among the international [organisations] are the WFP – World Food Program, UNHCR, UNICEF and local ones like Caritas. So, the authorities know the lists, the organizations exchanged lists and organised themselves in such a way that we are trying – I do not say that we are succeeding – to assist everyone in all the districts where they are. And for those who are outside of the province, the same organisations and the Church itself in these dioceses – Nacala, Nampula – are working to serve the population in a coordinated way.

For example, we sent two sisters who speak Makonde to Nampula, where they are working and assisting in the camps, facilitating dialogue. The two sisters are there with the local Church, which is carrying out this work together with other organizations.

DW Africa: Together with government institutions?

LL: Yes, always with the knowledge of the government.

DW Africa: What are the main difficulties in supporting IDPs at the moment?

LL: The difficulties are difficult to enumerate because almost everything is lacking. Food, due to the number of those displaced, is always low. Our warehouses fill up and empty because there are a lot of people. We received news every few minutes: ‘Look, another family has arrived. There are a few more families in that neighbourhood … ‘. So people are arriving in the various districts all the time.

For example, at the moment, Montepuez has 31,000 displaced people, Chiúre has more than 20,000, Pemba has more than 50,000. So they number in the thousands, and serving these people with food is not easy. But there is also a lack of clothes, mats, blankets. Tarps are needed, because many people are still sleeping in the open, because there are not enough tarps, or huts or tents to accommodate all these people. We need everything.

Source: Deutsche Welle