The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
UNICEF warns of a “very, very serious protection crisis in Mozambique” where growing attacks by jihadists are adding to an already desperate situation
The situation of families and individuals who have abandoned their belongings and livelihoods in northern Mozambique after the heinous attacks end of March in the town of Palma in Cabo Delgado province remains desperate.
“We are facing both a large and likely long-lasting humanitarian situation”, said Manuel Fontaine, UNICEF’s Director of Emergencies speaking remotely from Mozambique to journalists at the United Nations. “One third of the population is displaced right now, really striking to see in some towns, population has doubled, in some cases tripled. And so, you imagine, how heavy it is for populations and towns and villages that are already poor.”
Mozambique's north has been ravaged by an escalating Islamist insurgency since 2017, including the heinous attacks in Palma last month that killed dozens and displaced tens of thousands.
“These are constant stories: stories of people being kidnapped, stories of gender-based violence, horrific stories of all of these people working for days and days, kids arriving with their feet swollen and injured and having to be taken care of”, Manuel Fontaine said. “So, it is a very, very serious protection crisis.”
UNICEF has so far identified 220,000 children but assumes that the number is much higher. The Child Agency’s 2021 funding appeal for all Mozambique is USD 52,8 million dollars out of which USD 30 million are for Capo Delgado. Currently only 37 % funded are funded.
“We need to get a million dollars immediately in order to make sure that we don’t have a stockout of the ready-to-use therapeutic food that save children for example and then the cholera response really needs more money now”, said UNICEF’s spokesperson Marixie Mercado. “The numbers are much down in Cabo Delgado because of a huge effort by the government and UN agencies, including UNICEF and WHO, but there is a very high risk of another outbreak in these conditions, and it is already spreading to neighboring provinces. So that is critical.”
With difficult access to the population, and a severe malnutrition prevalence, the World Food Programme (WFP) said today, it needed USD 82 million to provide life-saving assistance to hundreds of thousands of people facing severe hunger in violence-ravaged northern Mozambique.
“As the security situation continues to deteriorate, more than 950,000 people in the north of Mozambique are now facing severe hunger”, said WFP’s spokesperson Tomson Phiri. “WFP plans to assist approximately 750,000 internally displaced people and vulnerable members of the hosting communities in Cabo Delgado as well as in the neighboring provinces of Nampula, Niassa and Zambezia.”
Phiri said that WFP aims to assist 50,000 people displaced from the town. “WFP is organizing emergency food distribution for families who have fled the violence in Palma and is providing high-energy biscuits, as well as ready-to-eat immediate response rations that are comprised of rice, vegetable oil, canned food such as sardines and beans, biscuits and water enough to last them two weeks.”
-ends-
Exterior wide shot, UN building to rear and UN flag in foreground, a sunny day.
- Medium shot, podium with speakers in a near-empty Room XIV in line with COVID-19 distancing measures, Palais des Nations.
- Medium shot, journalist listening in foreground, screen with speakers to rear, Room XIV, Palais des Nations
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Manuel Fontaine, Director of Emergencies, UNICEF (United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund): “We are facing both a large and likely long-lasting humanitarian situation. One third of the population is displaced right now, really striking to see in some towns, population has doubled, in some cases tripled. And so, you imagine how heavy it is for populations and towns and villages that are already poor.”
- Wide shot, journalist typing on laptop in foreground and podium with speakers to rear, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Manuel Fontaine, Director of Emergencies, UNICEF (United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund): “These are constant stories: stories of people being kidnapped, stories of gender-based violence, horrific stories of all of these people working for days and days, kids arriving with their feet swollen and injured and having to be taken care of. So, it is a very, very serious protection crisis.”
- Medium shot, podium with speakers, side shot, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Marixie Mercado, spokesperson, UNICEF (United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund): “We need to get a million dollars immediately in order to make sure that we don’t have a stock out of the ready-to-use therapeutic food that save children for example and then the cholera response really needs more money now. The numbers are much down in Cabo Delgado because of a huge effort by the government and UN agencies, including UNICEF and WHO, but there is a very high risk of another outbreak in these conditions, and it is already spreading to neighboring provinces. So that is critical.”
- Medium shot, TV broadcasting in foreground and podium with speakers to rear, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Tomson Phiri, spokesperson, WFP (World Food Programme): “As the security situation continues to deteriorate, more than 950,000 people in the north of Mozambique are now facing severe hunger. WFP plans to assist approximately 750,000 internally displaced people and vulnerable members of the hosting communities in Cabo Delgado as well as in the neighboring provinces of Nampula, Niassa and Zambezia.”
- Medium shot, journalist reading notes, side shot, Room XIV, Palais des Nations
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Tomson Phiri, spokesperson, WFP (World Food Programme): “In response, WFP is organizing emergency food distribution for families who have fled the violence in Palma and is providing high-energy biscuits, as well as ready-to-eat immediate response rations that are comprised of rice, vegetable oil, canned food such as sardines and beans, biscuits and water enough to last them two weeks.”
- Medium shot, podium with speakers, side shot, Room XIV, Palais des Nations.
Similar Stories
2
6
1
2
Edited News , Press Conferences , Images | HRC
At UN, war crimes probe pledges to continue to work for all impacted by Hamas-Israel conflict
As President Trump launched the international Board of Peace plan for Gaza on Thursday, top independent rights experts tasked by the UN Human Rights Council with investigating grave abuses linked to the Hamas-Israel war pledged to continue their work seeking justice and accountability for all.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN Human Rights Office Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani said Tuesday UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk was outraged by the repeated large-scale attacks by the Russian Federation on energy infrastructure in Ukraine.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN warns against repeating abuses in South Kordofan that occurred in El Fasher.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , UNICEF
Mozambique floods heighten disease, malnutrition risks – UN agencies
Catastrophic flooding in Mozambique is causing massive disruption to lives and livelihoods across the country, increasing the risk of disease and exposing urban areas to crocodiles, UN humanitarians warned on Tuesday.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | OCHA
Yemen: Children are dying and it’s going to get worse, aid veteran warns
In Yemen, renewed political instability threatens and economic woes linked to the war to complicate the already difficult task of helping vulnerable people suffering from deepening hunger, illness and displacement, the UN's top aid official there said on Monday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF , IFRC
Ukraine: Families in ‘survival mode’ amid Russian strikes and -18°C cold
Families across Ukraine are in “constant survival mode” amid ongoing waves of Russian missile and drone strikes that have left blocks without power for days at a time, while temperatures plunge to a deadly -18°C (-0.4°F), the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
At the bi-weekly press conference in Geneva, UN Human Rights Spokesperson Jeremy Laurence urges Iranian authorities to end violent repression and calls for accountability.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF
Gaza: A ceasefire that ‘still buries children’ is not enough, says UNICEF
Airstrikes, drone strikes and hypothermia are among the lethal conditions prevailing in Gaza despite the ceasefire, with more than 100 children killed since early October, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
At the UN bi-weekly press conference in Geneva, UN Human Rights Spokesperson Marta Hurtado commented on the widespread repression and intimidation against political opposition ahead of the general elections in Uganda.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , UNICEF
Aid agencies marked 1,000 days of war in Sudan on Friday with a grim reminder that the conflict has created the world’s biggest hunger crisis and largest displacement emergency. Every day, civilians have been “paying the price for a war they did not choose”, said the UN aid coordination office, OCHA.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
Ravina Shamdasani, UN Human Rights spokesperson, made the following comments at the bi-weekly press briefing of the United Nations on the United States’ intervention in Venezuela.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , OHCHR
Venezuela: US military intervention ‘far from victory for human rights’, makes world less safe – UN rights office
The UN rights office (OHCHR) on Tuesday expressed concern over the situation in Venezuela following the United States military operation and seizure of President Nicolás Maduro over the weekend, insisting that the move runs counter to international law and damages global security.