Business owners in the southern province of Gaza need 1.6 billion meticais (21.6 million euros) to recover from the damage caused by floods, Lusa reported on Thursday, April 9.
The vice-chairman of the Business Council in Gaza Province, Eduardo Matsinhe, stated that “overall, at this very moment, we would need 1.6 billion meticais for the province, including Chokwé, Chibuto, and all the districts that suffered [from the floods].”
The representative was speaking in that province on the sidelines of a review meeting with local business leaders, noting that this amount “would be ideal” to help the sector recover from the damage caused by the rainy season, which began in October of last year and is expected to end this month.
In Gaza province, about 240 companies have temporarily closed due to the floods that have occurred since the beginning of the year, affecting more than 3,000 workers, according to company estimates.
The Confederation of Economic Associations (CTA) acknowledged that the number of affected companies could rise, as the assessment of damages in the districts hit by the floods is still ongoing.
According to the business organization, the damage affects various economic sectors, including agriculture, small businesses, and the self-employed, with impacts that are still difficult to quantify due to the agricultural areas that remain flooded.
The impact of the floods on agricultural production remains uncertain, as the province is still in the rainy season and faces a new wave of flooding on farmland in several districts, the organization added.
The death toll from the current rainy season in Mozambique stands at 309, with 1.06 million people affected since October 2025, according to a March 31 update from the National Institute for Disaster Risk Management and Reduction (INGD).
The January floods alone caused at least 43 deaths, 147 injuries, and nine people missing, affecting a total of 715,803 people, with some southern areas experiencing a new wave of flooding in recent days.
Meanwhile, Cyclone Gezani’s passage through Inhambane on February 13 and 14 caused four more deaths and affected 9,040 people, according to INGD data.
In total, 24,229 homes have been partially destroyed, 11,996 completely destroyed, and 209,219 flooded so far during the current rainy season. In all, 304 health facilities, 109 places of worship, and 764 schools have been affected in less than six months.
INGD data also indicate that 316,267 hectares of farmland were lost, affecting 371,320 farmers, and 531,116 animals—including cattle, goats, and poultry—died. Additionally, 9,522 kilometers of roads, 51 bridges, and 237 culverts were damaged during this rainy season.
