United Nations Donates $13 million to Mozambique for Cyclone Kenneth Damage

“There is nothing called 'bad or rough weather'! It is just 'weather'. The cyclone, earthquake, rainfall etc. are normal processes of nature. Ironically, if they occur, we call them 'bad'!”

  ― Md. Ziaul Haque

When battling with nature, there is very little that can be done!

There is no doubt that Mozambique needs all the help it can get as they continue to battle violent flooding as torrential rain pushes up water levels, after the death and devastation wrought by Cyclone Kenneth.

Thousands of people have been affected and without succor; but while the world doing all it can to assist in the situation, the African Union (AU) as usual has taken a back seat on the matter.

According to reports by the AFP, the first floods have already been seen in some parts of Pemba, the capital of Cabo Delgado province, as well as in surrounding areas, lashed by heavy rain since daybreak.

“It’s been raining hard since Sunday morning,” said Deborah Nguyen, spokeswoman for the UN World Food Programme. “Violent flooding is expected in and around Pemba.

“We are very worried because, according to the forecasts, heavy rain is expected for the next four days,” she added.

“We expect the rainfall to be twice as much as that which accompanied Cyclone Idai that hit the city of Beira last month.”

Cyclone Kenneth is the second cyclone to hit Mozambique after Idai hit the center of the country Mozambique six weeks ago and communities in that region are still reeling from floods that swept away homes, roads, and bridges, leaving around 1,000 people dead and hundreds of thousands without shelter.

The World Bank has estimated that Mozambique will need over $2 billion to recover from the disaster.

So, it is disheartening why the African Union has not done anything tangible apart from its $350,000 donation to the country. What is $350,000 to a country that needs about $2 billion to recover?

How can the African Union make such a donation?

The country will, however, welcome the news of the donation by the World Bank which has provided $13 million for recovery.

“This new allocation of Central Emergency Response Fund funds will help humanitarian partners to scale up the response to address the needs of those most vulnerable in the aftermath of Cyclone Kenneth”, said UN Humanitarian Chief Mark Lowcock in a statement.

Earlier in April, The International Monetary Fund granted the southern African nation a $118.2 million credit facility.

Where is the AU when you need them?

Header  Image Credit: Euronews