Red Cross pledges more aid for conflict-hit Cabo Delgado
Soldiers from the Mozambican army patrol Mocimboa da Praia, Mozambique, on March 7, 2018, following an attack by suspected Islamists.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) will increase humanitarian aid to Mozambique in 2021 with particular emphasis on Cabo Delgado.
ICRC head Peter Maurer made the announcement after a meeting on Monday with the President Filipe Nyusi, following a visit to Cabo Delgado province on Sunday.
Cabo Delgado, which borders Tanzania, is home to more than 500,000 people displaced by jihadist attacks since 2017. It has seen atrocities including the beheading of civilians.
Mr Mauer said the ICRC will amplify its programmes for 2021 with a focus on health and training on international humanitarian laws.
Attacks in northern Mozambique have intensified, leaving tens of thousands of people fleeing from their homes.
Many need health care, the ICRC noted in a Twitter post on Monday, adding that “tragically, 70 percent of health facilities in the conflict-affected areas of Cabo Delgado no longer function”.
The ICRC has worked in Mozambique for more than 40 years, including during the civil war and cases of armed violence..
Earlier this month, the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) identified the Cabo Delgado conflict among 10 conflicts or crisis situations around the world that are likely to worsen or evolve in the coming months.
The US-based ACLED is the highest quality and most widely used real-time data and analysis source on political violence and protests around the world.
