The heavy rains of January 2015 caused mass evacuations in low-lying areas along the Licungo River in the district of Maganja da Costa. As a result, over 3,000 families in the area fled their homes in search of safe ground. More than four months after the heaviest rainfall, 2,861 families and 12,740 internally displaced persons (IDP) continue to live in six relocation sites throughout the district. The National Institute for Disaster Management (INGC) established two new official relocation communities in addition to three existing communities to house the majority of the displaced families. One additional location, Cabuir-Mabala, serves as an accommodation center housing 401 families.
The relocation sites within the district of Maganja da Costa have reported great variances in population over the past months. The sites of Alto Mutola and Mussaia have observed large numbers of displaced families returning to their areas of origin. Conversely, the relocation community of Landinho experienced a growth in population due to a new group of families arriving as recently as April whereas Vila Valdez demonstrated an increase attributed to improvements in registration. The overall IDP population in the district of Maganja da Costa is predominantly female (52%) and also relatively young as 62% of individuals are less than 18 years of age.
Many displaced families have begun leaving their homes within relocation sites in order to work in agricultural activities near their former homes in areas rich in land and fertile soil. Although this practice aids in family self-sufficiency, it creates other problems as these IDPs abandon their homes for multiple days at a time while they sleep near their farm plots. Thefts were reported as the most common security incident in three of the sites within the district, often occurring when families were away tending to their crops. Of further concern is the lack of organized security structures within the sites—only the relocation community of Mussaia reported a security presence.
Water access proves to be a challenge in the communities of Landinho and Mussaia, as the majority of families walk over 20 minutes to reach the nearest water source. Additionally, IDPs in two sites (Alto Mutola and Cabuir-Mabala) retrieve drinking water from open-air sources.
On a positive note, all six locations have formed site management committees consisting of community members. Finally, displaced families reported very positive signs regarding education
as over 75% of children in five of the six sites regularly attend school.