At least 10 public officials have been arrested for diverting donations intended for flood victims in Mozambique’s Gaza Province, southern Mozambique, local authorities announced today.
According to a statement from the Provincial Public Prosecutor’s Office of Gaza, four of the suspects are responding to the case while free, with two released on bail and two under identity and residence reporting obligations.
“The Provincial Public Prosecutor’s Office — Gaza was recently made aware, through anonymous reports, of cases of diversion of various products intended for victims of the floods that hit Gaza Province,” the statement said. It added that “a total of 10 defendants were arrested during these proceedings.”
Following the reports, search warrants were executed at multiple residences in Xai-Xai and in the Chibuto district, where numerous goods were seized.
“The investigations indicate that these acts were carried out by public servants holding management and leadership positions,” the statement added.
Among those arrested are the administrator of Xai-Xai district, the director of the Gaza Governor’s Office, and a warehouse clerk, who were found loading the products outside the designated hours.
“In the course of investigations, on February 22, 2026, around 20:00, an operation was conducted at the warehouses of the National Institute for Disaster Management (INGD), where two public officials were caught loading the aforementioned products,” said Zaqueu Mucambe, spokesperson for the National Criminal Investigation Service (SERNIC) in Gaza, during a press conference on Tuesday.
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Among the products seized in the initial arrests were:
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41 bales of used clothing
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63 sacks of corn flour
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20 sacks of 25 kg rice
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3 boxes of 2 liters of vegetable oil
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2 sacks of 50 kg butter beans
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9 packages of sugar
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An unspecified number of mattresses
According to the INGD, the January floods killed 27 people and affected 724,131 others, with Gaza Province being the hardest hit.
The total number of deaths in the current rainy season in Mozambique has risen to 242, with nearly 869,000 people affected since October, according to the latest update from the disaster management institute.
