The ICRC will improve its humanitarian response in Mozambique in 2021

Mozambique on the map of Africa Mozambique on the map of Africa Photo by Pawel.gaul on iStock

15 February 2021

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) will increase its humanitarian response to tackle the multiple threats endangering Mozambique

On 15 February 2021, the President of the ICRC, Peter Maurer met with the President of the Republic of Mozambique, Felipe Jacinto Nyusi, to discuss the humanitarian crisis affecting the country and the line of action to undertake in 2021. The ICRC has collaborated with the Mozambican Red Cross for over 40 years and its President has announced that the organization will scale up its assistance by focusing on health and the promotion of international humanitarian law.

Mozambique is facing a “triple humanitarian threat” as stated by Mr. Maurer. In addition to the sanitary threat posed by the COVID-19 and to the military crisis in Cabo Delgado, the country is vulnerable to climate change, as confirmed by the devastation caused by Cyclone Kenneth in 2019. The violence in Cabo Delgado is a serious humanitarian threat in the county which is still trying to recover from the damages caused by the hurricane. According to the ICRC, the insecurity affecting this northern province has pushed more than 500.000 people to flee to the surrounding urban settings Pemba, Montepuez and Metuge, adding strain on the already fragile local communities. The health system is at serious risk due to the climate and security emergency as most of the medical staff has fled to escape violence or has been disabled by the hurricane. According to the ICRC, 39 health facilities out of 55 in the conflict-affected district of Cabo Delgado are currently non-operational.

As part of its effort to increase the humanitarian response, in 2021 the ICRC will rehabilitate nine of these facilities to allow 175,400 patients in Pemba to access medical care, and it will scale up its support for medical centers treating trauma wounds. Additionally, the organization will intensify its support for the displaced and the host communities in rebuilding their lives by providing household tools and by helping locate the missing relatives.

 

To know more, please visit:

https://reliefweb.int/report/mozambique/mozambique-icrc-scale-its-humanitarian-response-2021

https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/news-feature/2020/12/21/Mozambique-Cabo-Delgado-displacement-mass-killings

https://www.ifrc.org/en/who-we-are/the-movement/icrc/

 

Author: Carla Leonetti; Editor: Francesca Mencuccini

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