Maputo, March 2, 2026 (Lusa) - A Spanish mission ensured the purification of 750,000 litres of water in 27 days in the Mozambican province of Gaza, benefiting 375,000 people affected by floods that destroyed basic infrastructure, the Spanish Embassy announced on Monday.
The AquaSTART team's operation took place in the town of Hokwe, in the district of Chókwè, one of the regions most affected by the January floods in southern Mozambique, in an intervention coordinated by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID).
"The START team made 750,000 litres of water drinkable, reaching 375,000 people in an emergency situation marked by the collapse of basic infrastructure and mass displacement of the local population," according to a joint press release from the Embassy and AECID.
In Hokwe, home to around 14,500 people, 12,500 displaced persons from neighbouring communities were taken in at a shelter after the January floods, which affected around 724,000 people across the country. The main local water reservoir was rendered unusable by the floods and the alternative system had high levels of salinity, unsuitable for human consumption, aggravating the health risk, explains Spanish Cooperation.
The AquaSTART module, included in the START (Spanish Technical Aid Response Team) team, in a mission involving 18 people from Madrid, Andalusia and Ceuta, was deployed on 3 February, ensuring a stable supply of drinking water, in coordination with the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) and the regional public water company.
According to the joint statement, this was followed on 23 February by the official donation of the water treatment plant, consisting of three lines with a capacity to purify up to 80,000 litres per day, delivered to Águas de Mozambique to reinforce the system at the administrative post of Chilembene, in the town of Hokwe.
"The donation will allow the system to remain operational after the START team leaves and be available for future emergencies, strengthening the resilience of the local water supply system," AECID emphasises, adding that Mozambican technicians have been trained to ensure the maintenance of the equipment.
The total number of deaths in the current rainy season in Mozambique has risen to 257, with nearly 869,000 people affected since October, according to an update from the disaster management institute.
According to information from the database of the National Institute for Disaster Management and Risk Reduction (INGD), updated on Sunday evening, there are 15 more deaths than on Thursday.
A total of 868,948 people have been affected during the current rainy season, corresponding to 200,824 families, with 12 missing and 331 injured, according to the same report.
The January floods alone caused at least 27 deaths - affecting 724,131 people - and the passage of Cyclone Gezani in Inhambane on 13 and 14 February caused four more deaths and affected 9,040 people, according to updated INGD data on the rainy season.
A total of 15,329 houses were partially destroyed, 6,168 completely destroyed and 183,824 flooded during the current rainy season. In all, 302 health facilities, 83 places of worship and 716 schools were affected in five months.
Since October, the Mozambican disaster management institute has activated 149 accommodation centres, which have housed 113,478 people, of which 27 are still active, with at least 20,297 people.
EYMZ/AYLS // AYLS
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