Extreme rainfall in early 2015 caused mass flooding in the district of Namacurra, Zambezia leading more than 2,000 families to abandon their damaged or destroyed homes in search of safer grounds. The majority of displaced families settled themselves in close proximity to their homes throughout four relocation sites, three sites in the locality of Furquia (Mucoa, Munguissa and Ronda) and one in the locality of Mbawa (Brigodo).
In response to the emergency, the National Institute for Disaster Management (INGC) worked with local government to establish three official relocation communities within the district to house the internally displaced persons (IDPs). The remaining families relocated to the accomodation center of Munguissa. Currently these four relocation sites house a total population of 1,172 families and 4,925 displaced individuals. These figures represent a large reduction in the population over the past months as many families have returned to their areas of origin.
Improvements have been made in the relocation sites in the five months since the onset of the displacement, yet conditions remain camp-like. All four sites report that over 75% of displaced families continue to reside in homes comprised of tents/ tarpaulins. While private latrine construction has been observed in the sites, IDPs in the relocation community of Mucoa indicate sanitation concerns stating that less than 25% of families have a private latrine and that open defecation is observed in the community. Finally, of worry is the fact that families in the accommodation center of Munguissa demonstrated a lack of options for potable water, indicating that all families retrieve drinking water from a nearby river.
All relocation communities positively report the presence of health services on-site for displaced families, providing easy access for early diagnoses of health problems. Malaria was noted as the most prevalent health problem in each of the sites, despite the fact that over 75% of families use mosquito nets in three of the communities.
The closest primary school is within a distance of one kilometer at each of the four locations.
Further, IDPs at all relocation sites indicate that over 75% of children regularly attend school.
Efforts have been made to improve the security of the communities, demonstrated by families in three of four sites indicating the presence of an organized security structure. This was further supported by the responses of men, women and children at all sites indicating that they feel safe within their respective communities.