The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Mozambique insurgency fuels fears of humanitarian crisis and regional insecurity
Escalating conflict linked to an insurgency in northern Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province has forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee and will likely prolong crisis levels of food insecurity there, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said on Tuesday.
More than 310,000 people have sought shelter in southern and western districts of the gas-rich province, while many thousands have fled into the neighbouring provinces of Nampula and Niassa, WFP spokesperson Tomson Phiri told journalists in Geneva.
“The number of displaced people has tripled over the last few months amid growing insecurity,” he said. “Also, many of those that we have been assisting, either in Cabo Delgado, in Nampula, in Niassa, they have nothing but WFP food assistance.”
The situation is linked to an armed insurgency that began in 2017, WFP said, amid reports that Islamic extremists continue to hold key areas in the gas-rich northern region, after attacking a number of towns in recent months.
These have caused loss of life and severely damaged infrastructure that was already severely affected by cyclone Kenneth in 2019, the UN agency noted.
Highlighting concerns that regional security risks being compromised by the insurgency, Mr. Phiri added that there were ongoing clashes and that “these armed groups are linked definitely to some terrorist organizations”.
Thousands more Mozambicans “have also fled as refugees into (Tanzania’s) neighbouring Tabora district and others…deepening concerns among the international community about the regionalisation of this conflict”, he continued.
Apart from alarming levels of food insecurity in Cabo Delgado – where more than one in two children under five is chronically malnourished, above the 43 per cent national average – there are additional concerns about coronavirus transmission.
“Cabo Delgado….currently is recording the second highest number of COVID cases in Mozambique. And population displacements have the potential to accelerate the spread of the virus,” said Mr. Phiri.
Despite “major operational challenges”, WFP is working to reach displaced people in Cabo Delgado, Nampula and Niassa, including those “stranded” in highly insecure areas facing “crisis” levels of food insecurity.
Today, WFP provides food assistance to nearly 200,000 people in the province.
The UN agency is stepping up aid to reach more than 300,000 people, but it has warned that without continued funding, assistance may have to be cut.
“If the situation does not improve beyond December, WFP will be forced to even suspend assistance and that is a situation we do not want to go,” Mr. Phiri said. “It costs us $4.7 million a month, we need $142 million between now and February, those are our needs.”
- Exterior wide shot, Palais des Nations flag alley, nations’ flags flying, a beautiful day.
- Wide shot, podium with speakers in a near-empty Room XIV in line with COVID-19 distancing measures, Palais des Nations, UN Geneva.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Tomson Phiri, spokesperson, WFP (World Food Programme): “The number of displaced people has tripled over the last few months amid growing insecurity. Also, many of those that we have been assisting, either in Cabo Delgado, in Nampula, in Niassa, they have nothing but WFP food assistance.”
- Medium shot, cameraman filming, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Tomson Phiri, spokesperson, WFP (World Food Programme): “There is fighting and these armed groups are linked definitely to some terrorists organizations, I’m not too sure which ones exactly, but what I can tell you right now is that it is indeed an insurgency in northern Cabo Delgado.”
- Medium shot, journalist sitting in front of laptop, touching her face mask, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Tomson Phiri, spokesperson, WFP (World Food Programme): “Thousands of Mozambicans have also fled as refugees into neighbouring Tabora district and others, and this is deepening concerns among the international community about the regionalisation of this conflict”.
- Medium shot, journalist sitting in front of laptop, using listening device, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Tomson Phiri, spokesperson, WFP (World Food Programme): “Cabo Delgado, as some of you may know, currently is recording the second highest number of COVID cases in Mozambique. And population displacements have the potential to accelerate the spread of the virus.”
- Medium shot, journalist listening, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Tomson Phiri, spokesperson, WFP (World Food Programme): “If the situation does not improve beyond December, WFP will be forced to even suspend assistance and that is a situation we do not want to go.”
- Medium shot, journalist listening while touching his face mask, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Tomson Phiri, spokesperson, WFP (World Food Programme): “It costs us $4.7 million a month, we need $142 million between now and February, those are our needs.”
- Wide shot, showing an almost empty room, with some journalists and UN staff members in the audience, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
- Medium-wide shot, showing podium with WFP speaker, with UN logo behind, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
- Close-up, hands typing on laptop, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
Similar Stories
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | UNAIDS
World AIDS Day 2025: Overcoming disruption, transforming the AIDS response
1
1
1
Edited News | UN WOMEN
Gaza women are ‘last line of protection’ for their families amid attacks, hunger and harsh winter – UN Women
Women in Gaza are ensuring their families’ survival “with nothing but courage and exhausted hands” while violence continues and essentials remain in short supply, the UN’s gender equality agency warned on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
Since the ceasefire began on 27 November 2024, Israeli military strikes in Lebanon have killed at least 127 civilians. Nearly a year later, these attacks continue to increase, causing civilian deaths and damage to civilian structures.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | UNCTAD
A new report by UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) finds that the prolonged military operation and long-standing restrictions have driven the economy of the Occupied Palestinian Territory into its most severe contraction on record, wiping out decades of development gains and deepening fiscal and social fragility.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF , WHO , WFP
Ongoing attacks and airstrikes attributed to Israeli forces in Gaza continue to kill and maim people of all ages in the shattered enclave despite an agreed ceasefire, UN agencies said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF , OCHA
Gaza: After Security Council vote humanitarians urge aid scale-up as winter rains hit families hard
Following the UN Security Council’s Monday endorsement of a US peace plan for Gaza, UN humanitarians urged prioritizing aid access under the scheme as severe rains and flooding deepened Palestinian suffering.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR , UNMAS , WHO
Just how many people are still trapped in the Sudanese city of El Fasher?
That’s the burning question for relatives of the many thousands of people believed to still be there, since paramilitary fighters overran the regional capital of North Darfur last month, after a 500-day siege.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
At the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva, UN Human Rights spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan made the following remarks on the ongoing violence in the occupied WestBank.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
At a Special Session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva today, the UN Human Rights Chief, Volker Türk made the following remarks on the situation in El-Fasher, Sudan.
2
1
2
Statements , Conferences , Edited News | HRC
UN Human Rights Council holds special session on Sudan as mass atrocities reported in El Fasher
The UN Human Rights Council convened an emergency session on Friday on the situation in and around El Fasher, Sudan, following reports of mass killings in the North Darfur capital. States passed a resolution that will mandate an investigation into likely mass atrocities during the capture of El Fasher by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on 26 October.
1
1
2
Edited News | UN WOMEN
Sudan: Women’s bodies ‘a crime scene’ as tens of thousands flee El Fasher atrocities – UN Women
In war-torn Sudan, rape is being systematically used as a weapon and simply being a woman is “a strong predictor” of hunger, violence and death, the UN’s gender equality agency warned on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
The UN human rights office (OHCHR) on Friday called for an end to continuing expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, where “unchecked” settler violence has surged since the war in Gaza began more than two years ago.