Emergency response after Cyclone Idai has been carried out successfully in Mozambique
The Lutheran World Information Centre
“Our life has become better,” says Francisco Tuboj Mageze – a farmer who lives together with his wife and six children in the village of Muchambona. He is one of the residents of Mozambique’s western Manica Province who received aid from the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) after his country suffered from Cyclone Idai. His family was badly affected by the storm: the sorghum, peanut and maize harvest was completely destroyed and the floods swept away all of their livestock.
Half a year after the natural disaster, he and his neighbours see the changes brought about by a well-coordinated emergency response. By building shelters, restoring water pumps and boreholes, as well as supporting residents in advocating for their interests, the LWF World Service has changed the situation that thousands of residents of Manica Province found themselves in since April 2019.
A desperate situation
Cyclone Idai was one of the worst tropical storms ever to come over southern Africa. According to data from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), the tropical storm, which raged twice in mid-March 2019, killed more than 600 people in Mozambique alone. More than 1.8 million people were in need of aid. The cyclone caused devastation in Zimbabwe and Malawi.
The Mageze family in front of their shelter in the village of Muchambona, in Manica Province, Mozambique. In the storm, the family lost everything. Photo: LWF
“There was despair in the community, they had never experienced such devastation,” says Job Ngaroita Ngwerebaje, leader of the LWF Emergency Response team in Mozambique. “Harvests, livestock, shelters, household items and even family members were swept away.”
“Life in temporary tents began, people were dependent on food aid and unfiltered water, because many water sources had been destroyed or contaminated,” Ngwerebaje continues. “Education was interrupted, because schools were either swept away by the water or were used as accommodation for people who had lost their homes. The desperate situation was made worse by the destruction of health services, since health facilities were also damaged by the storm.”
Reaching isolated places
The LWF began providing aid in April 2019, supporting people in three isolated places in Manica Province. LWF humanitarian aid was carried out in cooperation with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Mozambique and with the support of other LWF member churches and partners.
“Community life is returning to its usual rhythm. We see families rebuilding their homes, eating together, children going back to school,” Job Ngaroita Ngwerebaje, leader of the LWF Emergency Response team in Mozambique.
After half a year, the changes are visible. “Following our involvement, we see so much more hope,” says Ngwerebaje. “Community life is returning to its usual rhythm. We see families rebuilding their homes, eating together, children going back to school. Some families have even begun growing food in small gardens. The presence of aid from national and international organisations gave people hope. They were grateful that they are not alone in this situation and that there is great goodwill, even from people outside the country.”
More than 1,600 families in Sussundenga and Mossurize received materials for building shelters and other urgently needed items – kitchen utensils, solar-powered lamps and mosquito nets. “We were living in an improvised tent,” says Francisco Tuboj Mageze. “I got shelter for my family and tools, along with a water filter, a portable toilet and kitchen utensils.”
Sanitation and clean water
A child uses an improvised washstand to wash their hands after the toilet. The LWF taught people how to make such devices, which played a decisive role in improving personal hygiene. Photo: LWF
Alongside temporary housing, providing water and sanitation was one of the most important concerns. The floods contaminated water sources, leaving thousands without clean drinking water and usable toilets. When the LWF arrived, the first cases of cholera were detected, which by mid-April had already turned into a widespread epidemic. “Many people in the village fell ill from drinking the untreated water from the river,” said Arminda Laice from the village of Muchambona.
The LWF considered water and sanitation to be the most important priorities for preventing the spread of disease in the villages. The LWF worked on restoring existing water sources, installing new ones, as well as setting up public and family toilets. LWF staff also trained local residents to maintain good hygiene in harsher living conditions.
“Now that the LWF has installed a hand pump, we can drink clean water and properly clean our homes. The children in the village no longer get sick,” added Laice, who is herself a member of the “water committee”. The LWF formed and trained such committees to ensure that local residents would be able to maintain and repair water sources once the emergency response team was gone.
Arminda Laice Mageze is one of the seven members of the “water committee” trained by the LWF. Photo: LWF
Aid with the goal of sustainability
Although the emergency response was planned as a short-term intervention, sustainability was one of the most important priorities, said Roland Schlott, the LWF’s global humanitarian aid coordinator. “One of our strategic partners, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Mozambique, will continue to stand alongside the affected communities once our international team has finished its work,” says Schlott. He added that in every action carried out, LWF staff worked in close cooperation with the village administration and the relevant government authorities. The LWF used the available local infrastructure and also purchased local materials.
“We will not be able to prevent the next cyclone, but we can make sure that people know what to do when it happens,” Roland Schlott, the LWF’s global humanitarian aid coordinator.
“This provided support for the local economy, gave additional skills to people in the community and connected them with the relevant government authorities. In this way, we try to ensure that our support is sustainable and will have a long-lasting impact for many years,” concluded Schlott. “We will not be able to prevent the next cyclone, but we can make sure that people know what to do when it happens.”
The LWF emergency response in Mozambique was made possible with the support of Australian Lutheran World Service (ALWS), Canadian Lutheran World Relief (CLWR), République et Canton de Genève, Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria (ELKB), the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Zimbabwe and the Luther Society of the Netherlands.
Chimoio, Mozambique / Geneva
19.09.2019.
Source: Lutheran World Federation news