At least 92,000 hectares of agricultural production have been affected by flooding since the beginning of the current rainy season in Mozambique, affecting more than 57,000 families in eight provinces, it was announced on Friday. According to a statement released today by the Ministry of Agriculture, Environment and Fisheries (MAAP), the area affected by flooding in the current rainy season corresponds to 1.8% of the total area sown in the affected provinces, namely Inhambane, Maputo city and province in the south, Sofala, Tete, Manica and Zambézia in the centre, and Nampula in northern Mozambique. “Sofala province was the most affected, with more than 54,000 hectares flooded out of approximately 211,000 hectares sown, affecting more than 41,000 farming families.
This is followed by Zambezia, where more than 35,000 hectares have been flooded, out of approximately 1.3 million hectares planted. Inhambane shows residual impacts, with about 120 hectares flooded,” the note said. According to the government, the main crops affected include rice, maize, beans, cassava and sweet potatoes.
The rains also affected 180 fishponds in Sofala province, destroying at least 30, in addition to destroying 40 cages, resulting in a recorded loss of more than 116,000 fingerlings and affecting around 390 fish farmers. In the livestock sector, damage was reported to more than 170 infrastructure facilities, affecting around 143,000 animals, including cattle, goats, pigs and poultry, and involving approximately 200 farmers, the note added. Since 1 October, the start of the rainy season, and until 1 January, 163 houses were totally or partially destroyed, and another 11 were flooded due to the bad weather.
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The 2025-2026 rainy season also affected 19 schools and 8,773 students, according to the National Institute for Disaster Risk Management and Reduction (INGD). On 28 December, the Mozambican authorities activated flood-prevention measures following warnings of heavy rains, accompanied by thunderstorms and gusty winds, which are still in place in five provinces in the centre and north of the country. According to a statement from the INGD, the decision to activate the mechanism comes after forecasts of heavy rains in the provinces of Tete and Zambézia in the centre of the country, and Nampula, Cabo Delgado and Niassa in the north, “aggravating the prevailing situation of flooding in the low-lying areas of the Montepuez, Megaruma, Muaguine, Rovuma, Monapo and Licungo river basins”.
Mozambique is considered one of the countries most severely affected by global climate change, facing cyclical floods and tropical cyclones during the rainy season, as well as prolonged periods of severe drought. The president of Mozambique said on 18 December that at least 313 people had died, 1,255 had been injured, and more than 1.8 million had been affected by cyclones Chido, Dikeledi and Jude, which hit Mozambique during the 2024-2025 rainy season.
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