Mozambique: UN needs $120M for Idai victims

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Mozambique: UN needs $120M for Idai victims

1:15 CAT | 11 Mar 2020

Photo: Lusa

The UN’s resident coordinator in Mozambique said on Wednesday that people in the centre of the country have still not received basic aid one year after cyclone Idai.

In an interview with Lusa, Myrta Kaulard acknowledged that of the €1.1 billion pledges of donor support made a year ago, only €173.3 million has been made in relation to the projects presented.

Today, a year later, the United Nations system lacks the funds to continue providing support to Mozambique, Myrta Kaulard warned.

“There is a lot of money missing”, she stressed, at least $120 million are needed immediately for basic aid, which is essential to avoid further vulnerabilities such as school dropouts or early marriages to support the family.

“The resources available to humanitarian organisations are those they received after Idai” and are depleted, she warned – at a time when there is still a month to go before the end of the current cyclone season.

After the emergency humanitarian aid phase, the cooperation partners pledged about €1.1 billion for reconstruction at a donor conference held two and a half months after the cyclone.

At the beginning of February this year, they assured the Mozambican government €173.3 million for the projects presented, but the coordinator remains optimistic.

“At the end of the year we will begin to see the results of the investment” of the millions promised, the UN resident coordinator in Mozambique added.

The 2018/2019 rainy season was one of the most severe in Mozambique: 714 people died, including 648 victims of two cyclones (Idai and Kenneth) that hit Mozambique.

Cyclone Idai affected 100% of Mozambique in March, claimed 603 lives, and the city of Beira, one of the country’s major cities, was severely affected.

Cyclone Kenneth, which hit northern Mozambique in April, killed 45 people.

Source: Lusa