Floods displace hundreds of thousands in Mozambique

A catastrophic flood emergency in southern and central Mozambique has forced nearly 400,000 people from their homes and affected more than 800,000 nationwide, UNHCR officials say. Heavy rains—amplified by La Niña and linked to climate change—saw rivers burst their banks and low-lying communities submerged, with some areas receiving more than a year’s worth of rain in days. Aerial imagery shows roads and buildings partially underwater and thousands sheltering in overcrowded school compounds and other improvised sites.

Displacement has come quickly as villages were cut off, homes washed away and farmland destroyed. Emergency shelters, schools and community buildings are hosting large numbers of people but remain under-resourced, with sanitation, clean water and health services critically lacking. Aid agencies warn of rising risks of cholera, malaria and other waterborne diseases, and report that children—many separated from relatives—face interruptions to education, protection and nutrition services.

Infrastructure damage is severe: roads and bridges collapsed or impassable, hindering rescue efforts and aid delivery. Evacuations often required boats or wading through chest-deep water. The floods have also devastated agricultural land at a crucial point in the farming calendar, destroying crops, seeds and livestock and raising fears of looming food insecurity.

Mozambique’s government has declared emergencies in multiple regions and deployed military and emergency services for evacuations and relief, while UNHCR and humanitarian partners provide emergency shelter, relief items and protection services. Agencies say funding gaps and strained humanitarian programs are hampering the response and have called for urgent international support to scale up assistance.

Officials note the displacement compounds earlier crises—many families are experiencing repeated relocations in recent years due to conflict and extreme weather. Aid groups stress that beyond immediate relief, longer-term investment in climate resilience, early warning systems and stronger infrastructure is needed to break cycles of repeated displacement. With large areas still underwater or unsafe and the situation remaining fluid, humanitarian actors warn the crisis could deepen without rapid, sustained aid.