Mozambican President Daniel Chapo today called for cases of diversion of funds and goods intended to support victims of climate events to be referred to justice, advocating for civil and criminal accountability of those involved.
“We must also ensure that situations involving the diversion of funds and essential goods are referred to justice and that disciplinary proceedings are initiated against all offenders involved, without neglecting the administrative, civil and criminal liability that may apply,” said Daniel Chapo.
The Mozambican head of state was speaking at the opening of a seminar on external oversight of public resources, organized by the Administrative Court, where he noted that this body plays a central role in the management of public assets in the service of the people’s interests.
“The efficiency and effectiveness of the response to climate change depends on how we manage our public funds, whether in the preventive dimension, in the immediate response, or in the post-disaster reconstruction phase,” said Chapo.
“We advocate that it is not enough to mobilize national and international solidarity, or resources — it is imperative to ensure that these reach the populations that need them most, and quickly. To this end, it is urgent to ensure that what was mobilized to address the harmful effects of climate events that have struck the country has been and will be managed rigorously,” the Mozambican President added.
The head of state reiterated his promise to strengthen the policy on natural disaster prevention, rapid response, resilience, and reconstruction in the face of climate change, which he described as “a global challenge.”
“These increasingly frequent and intense weather phenomena require rigorous financial planning and efficient and effective mechanisms for the allocation and control of resources mobilized for emergency situations,” said Daniel Chapo.
He also recalled that one of the pillars of the Government’s five-year plan concerns environmental sustainability and the circular economy, which includes a climate change and disaster management programme aimed at strengthening the country’s resilience to the impacts of such events, including the development of a green and low-carbon economy.
Read more about this topic: Floods: Death toll in Mozambique’s current rainy season rises to 258
At least 10 public officials, including former Xai-Xai district administrator Argelência Chissano, were detained last week for diverting donations intended for flood victims, local authorities announced on Friday.
According to the provincial prosecutor’s office, following the reports, search warrants were executed at several residences in the city of Xai-Xai and in the district of Chibuto, where various products were seized, namely 218 mattresses, 41 bales of used clothing, 63 bags of corn flour, 20 bags of 25-kilogram rice, three boxes of two-liter vegetable oil, and two 50-kilogram bags of butter beans.
Mozambique has already received 1.3 billion meticais (€17.5 million) and 6,700 tonnes of various products to support flood victims, the Government announced on Tuesday.
The total number of deaths in the current rainy season in Mozambique has risen to 262, with nearly one thousand people affected since October, according to an update published Tuesday by the National Disaster Risk Management and Reduction Institute (INGD).
“These increasingly frequent and intense weather phenomena require rigorous financial planning and efficient and effective mechanisms for the allocation and control of resources mobilized for emergency situations,” said Daniel Chapo, Mozambique’s President.
A total of 869,031 people have been affected during the current rainy season, corresponding to 200,842 families, with 10 people still missing and 331 injured, according to the same report.
Since October, the Mozambican disaster management institute has activated 149 accommodation centers, which have sheltered 113,478 people, of which 20 are still active, housing at least 5,852 people.
