The Mozambican government needs to mobilise an additional MT16.4 billion (€229.3 million) to fully fund the 2026-2027 Annual Contingency Plan, approved by the Council of Ministers, which aims to provide assistance to 2.2 million people at risk from extreme weather events, according to the Lusa news agency.

The plan carries a total budget of MT39.8 billion (€556.4 million), of which the government currently has MT23.4 billion (€327.3 million) available, announced Inocêncio Impissa, spokesperson for the Council of Ministers, at the closing session of the 32nd ordinary sitting held in Maputo.

“At this moment, the National Disaster Management Institute records a deficit of MT16.4 billion that continues to be mobilised from different partners,” Impissa said.

According to Impissa, the resources already available come from the Calamity Management Fund, materials held in warehouses of the National Institute for Disaster Risk Management and Reduction (INGD), as well as contributions and commitments announced by cooperation partners.

The 2026-2027 Annual Contingency Plan seeks to identify the main risks and threats, assess their potential impacts, and determine the number of people in vulnerable situations. It also includes multi-sectoral prevention and risk reduction measures, as well as the human, material, and financial resources needed to ensure humanitarian assistance.

The spokesperson highlighted that the upcoming rainy season presents particular challenges due to the possibility of simultaneous weather phenomena with differing impacts across the country’s regions.

“This season has the particularity of combining, on one hand, floods, inundations, and cyclones, and on the other, the El Niño phenomenon, with a higher probability of rainfall far below normal in the southern and central zones of Mozambique,” he explained.

The government has already raised the alarm over possible El Niño effects in at least 52 districts in the Centre and South regions, and has announced the preparation of a national action plan to mitigate the impacts of drought and water scarcity.

Mozambique is considered one of Africa’s most climate-vulnerable countries, frequently affected by floods, tropical cyclones, and severe storms.

INGD data show that the last rainy season, between October 2025 and April 2026, claimed 311 lives and affected approximately 1.07 million people.

The El Niño phenomenon, associated with abnormal warming of surface waters in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean, alters precipitation and temperature patterns across various regions of the world, and can trigger prolonged droughts and other extreme weather events.