The United Nations Satellite Centre (UNOSAT) estimates that 317 square kilometres of land are flooded in the provinces of Sofala and Inhambane, in central and southern Mozambique, due to heavy rainfall that has persisted for several days.
The information is contained in a report released by the agency, based on satellite images collected on 31 December, which analysed a total area of 31,416 square kilometres. According to the document cited by Lusa, the flooded areas “represent a potential exposure to flooding for around 2,242 people living in the affected zones,” adding that the data still require ground verification.
“The images identify the districts of Buzi, Chibabava, Dondo, Gorongosa, Machanga, Muanza, Nhamatanda and the city of Beira, in Sofala province (central Mozambique), and Govuro, in Inhambane province (south), as the most problematic,” the report stated.
On 24 December, authorities announced the rescue of a couple who became trapped on a rock due to flooding in the Vanduzi River, in the district of Gorongosa, Sofala. According to the National Administration of Conservation Areas (ANAC), the individuals were stranded while attempting to cross to the opposite riverbank.
“To rescue the couple, support was requested from Zambeze Delta Safaris (ZDS), which used an anti-poaching and conservation helicopter to save the victims,” ANAC said, as quoted by the Portuguese news agency.
In October, the Government approved the national contingency plan for the 2025–26 rainy season, valued at 14 billion meticais (USD 217.1 million). However, it acknowledged that it currently has only 6 billion meticais (USD 93 million) of the required funding.
Mozambique is considered one of the countries most severely affected by climate change, cyclically facing floods and tropical cyclones during the rainy season, which runs from October to April. Between December and March of the last cyclone season, Mozambique was hit by three cyclones, including Cyclone Chido, the first and most severe, at the end of 2024.
The number of cyclones affecting the country “has increased over the past decade,” as has wind intensity, according to the State of the Climate in Mozambique 2024 report by the Mozambique Meteorological Institute, released in March.
Extreme weather events caused at least 1,016 deaths in Mozambique between 2019 and 2023, affecting around 4.9 million people, according to data from the National Statistics Institute.
Source: Diário Económico
