Maputo, Jan. 26, 2026 (Lusa) - The European Union (EU) will send a second cargo plane with humanitarian aid for another 20,000 people affected by the floods in Mozambique in the coming days, it was announced on Monday, following the arrival of the first shipment in Maputo.
"Another plane with similar cargo will arrive in Mozambique in the coming days, with a view to supporting around 20,000 people," announced the EU ambassador to Mozambique, Antonino Maggiore, at the cargo terminal of Maputo airport.
Today, the first humanitarian plane arrived in the country carrying 88 tonnes of essential supplies financed by the EU, which will be distributed to those affected by the floods by teams from the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) in Mozambique.
The supplies, valued at US$552,000 (€465,500), include health, water, sanitation and hygiene, nutrition, education and child protection materials, as well as tents that will be used to create "safe spaces for children", temporary health clinics and other essential services in the areas most affected by the floods.
The goods that arrived in Maputo today are expected to directly or indirectly benefit 30,000 to 50,000 people, "many of them children facing conditions of great vulnerability," said the European diplomat after delivering the donation to the Mozambican authorities.
"We are also coordinating with member states, I have already mentioned Portugal, but also Spain, in terms of managing priorities in the water sector. And, as I said, we are in contact with Brussels for the arrival of experts," he added.
The diplomat added that the EU's ongoing aid is only the beginning, given the needs that lie ahead: "But I wanted to highlight that we have already made €950,000 available. And I hope that this is only the beginning (...). It is clear that the crisis will continue and we have many effects to manage, so, with Brussels, we are looking at what more we can do."
At the ceremony to receive this humanitarian aid, Mozambique's minister of foreign affairs and cooperation, Maria Manuela Lucas, stressed that the EU was the first to mobilise support for the floods on the ground since 16 January.
"We can only be grateful for this gesture. It is a noble gesture, but it means that we are partners," said the minister, also highlighting the support that neighbouring countries are giving to Mozambique and emphasising the extraordinary nature of these floods, when the rainy season (October to April) is still only halfway through.
"This is just the beginning. You can see the magnitude, can't you? Many of us are saying that we have never seen floods of this magnitude," said Maria Manuela Lucas, acknowledging that the situation is "very difficult".
More than 150,000 homes have been flooded in Mozambique in this month's floods, as well as nearly 230 health facilities and more than 360 schools, according to the National Institute for Disaster Management and Risk Reduction (INGD).
According to the INGD database, to which Lusa had access, with information up to 07:00 (05:00 Lisbon time) today, the floods in various parts of the country have already affected 652,189 people, equivalent to 141,317 families, with 3,445 homes partially destroyed, 767 totally destroyed and 153,417 flooded.
INGD data also reports 45 injured and four missing as a result of these floods in less than 20 days, at a time when hundreds of families remain cut off, awaiting rescue, especially in southern Mozambique.
Since the beginning of the rainy season in October, including the last two weeks of flooding, 131 people have died in Mozambique, in addition to 144 injured, and 779,528 people have been affected, according to INGD data.
As of 16 January, a total of 103 deaths and 173,000 people affected since the beginning of the rainy season in Mozambique (which runs from October to April) had been reported, the government said that day, subsequently declaring a national red alert.
According to today's data, there are currently 99 accommodation centres in operation, with 99,907 people, including 19,556 who had to be rescued.
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