Cyclone Chido, which made landfall in Mozambique on December 15, has affected more than 600,000 people across the north of the country. To date, at least 116 people have died, and 140,000 homes, 250 schools, and 52 health facilities have been either completely or partially destroyed.
Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has launched an emergency response alongside the Ministry of Health to ensure people have access to health care in the most affected areas, predominantly in Cabo Delgado, but also in Nampula and Niassa provinces.
MSF mobile teams will focus on providing mental health care and logistics support. In the main health center in Mecufi district, Cabo Delgado province, MSF staff will also continue to help run the emergency room and the pediatric and maternity wards; and provide general and sexual and reproductive health care as well as treatment for HIV, tuberculosis (TB), and chronic diseases; and assess for malnutrition.
MSF calls on donors and other humanitarian organizations to quickly mobilize support to respond to people affected by this emergency.
Cyclone adds challenges to an area facing ongoing conflict
Cyclone Chido has added a new burden to Cabo Delgado, where according to the United Nations 576,000 people remain displaced in different parts of the province due to the conflict that started in 2017. A further 630,000 have returned to areas previously affected by the violence.
“This natural disaster comes on the top of the man-made crisis, and makes people in northern Mozambique, who were already in a fragile situation due to violence, yet more vulnerable,” says Luisa Suárez, MSF medical coordinator in Mozambique. “It is crucial to mobilize support from other humanitarian organizations to respond to this crisis quickly.”
“Since the onset of the cyclone, we have mobilized teams already present in other areas of Cabo Delgado—amid the ongoing conflict—to assess the impact of the storm in the affected districts of Pemba, Metuge, and Mecufi,” says Jacinta Francisco, head of the assessment team. “All the health centers visited in Metuge and Mecufi were damaged by the cyclone, with services currently being provided in makeshift tents, and health staff overwhelmed by the workload and loss they have endured.”
The cyclone has compounded existing challenges in Cabo Delgado, where the health system was already severely weakened by the conflict. Beyond the need for structural repairs, basic services such as clean water and electricity have also been disrupted in many health centers, further limiting the provision of health care. This situation is exacerbated by the general lack of attention to the province, reflected in a reduction of donors and funds, making it increasingly difficult for other actors to respond effectively while already operating with limited resources.
These figures are expected to rise as ongoing assessments provide more data. Most homes, constructed from clay and bamboo, proved highly vulnerable to the storm.
Physical and mental health support is critical to recovery
“People are now torn between seeking food and rebuilding their lives,” says Francisco. “Many survivors have lost family members, homes, and livelihoods. Mental health support is crucial, not only for affected communities but also for exhausted health professionals with limited resources to respond to the current situation.”
In recent days, MSF teams donated supplies to the Ministry of Health including medicines, such as antibiotics, and emergency kits including infusion sets, suture material, and items to treat wounds.
MSF has also donated and installed a tent to serve as the maternity ward at Nanlia health center and to support the infrastructure in Mecufi health center. In addition, our teams fixed the cable connection between the power generator and the health center building in the town of Metuge, making the operating theatre functional again.
Mozambique is one of the countries most vulnerable to the climate crisis and often faces the risk of cyclones during this season. This brings consequences for people’s health, as the storm has affected access to clean drinking water, which increases the risk of waterborne diseases.
“We are particularly concerned about the potential emergence of diseases such as cholera, which is endemic in the region, or malaria” says Suárez. “We were already seeing a high number of cases [of malaria] in our supported health facilities before the cyclone.”
MSF in Mozambique
MSF has been running medical and humanitarian activities in Cabo Delgado since 2019 to assist people affected by conflict, through community services and in support of health centers and hospitals. We run projects in Palma, Mocímboa da Praia, Mueda, Muidumbe, and Nangade districts, and provide mental health support, improve water and sanitation systems, offer sexual and reproductive health consultations, and assist people living with HIV and tuberculosis, among other activities.
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