Mozambique

Children displaced by some of the worst flooding across southern Africa in decades are facing a growing health crisis, with a lack of running water and destroyed sanitation facilities fuelling a spike in waterborne diseases.

Southern Mozambique was hit by devastating floods that claimed over 100 lives and affected roughly 432,000 people, including thousands of children at extreme risk. The disaster caused widespread destruction of homes, livestock, and infrastructure, notably in Gaza Province after the unprecedented opening of all 14 floodgates at the Massingir Dam. Save the Children has been actively responding by using boats to rescue stranded families and providing emergency aid in temporary accommodation centres. Despite these efforts, the organization warns that humanitarian resources are critically strained and urgent international support is required to prevent the crisis from escalating further as heavy rains continue.

Ângelo Aniceto, 18, President of the Environmental Club at Chókwè Secondary School, was motivated to learn about the environment. After Green Mindset training, he built a semi-hydroponic greenhouse at home with recycled materials to grow vegetables, aiming for family consumption and business. He encourages colleagues and represents the spirit of Project LINK in Chókwè, showing how young people can transform knowledge into real solutions.

By activating rapid child protection mechanisms and mobilising community networks, Save the Children managed to locate Olinda*’s mother within just five hours. This successful outcome demonstrates the impact of coordinated humanitarian action and the vital role of Child-Friendly Spaces in ensuring no child is left to face a crisis alone in northern Mozambique. A response largely made possible by the crucial support of the EU Civil Protection & Humanitarian Aid.

The LINK Project, funded by the Green Climate Fund (GCF), is rehabilitating 192 water boreholes and empowering Water and Sanitation Committees in Manica, Gaza and Tete. The objective is to improve access to drinking water, strengthen community management of water resources, and increase community resilience to climate change. The LINK Project is funded by the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and implemented in partnership with the Government of Mozambique

The armed conflict in Northern Mozambique has triggered a severe child rights crisis, leaving 441,721 children and 5,365 teachers in urgent need of humanitarian education support, with 138 schools closed and 82,800 children having their learning interrupted. Despite the critical scale of this emergency, humanitarian education funding has alarmingly declined over the past four years, dropping from 37.5% coverage in 2022 to just 5.1% in 2025, marking the lowest funding level across all humanitarian clusters. Save the Children, alongside its allies, is therefore demanding urgent action from donors, UN agencies, and government stakeholders to demonstrate their duty of care and commitment to reverse this situation, protect the right of conflict-affected children to safe and uninterrupted learning, and prevent long-term, intergenerational impacts resulting from a lack of education.

In collaboration with National Human Rights Commission (NCHR), we reaffirm children's rights to dignity, protection, and opportunity in Mozambique. Save the Children and NCHR co-hosted the 4th Regional Conference of National Human Rights Institutions in Southern Africa, addressing priorities like ending early and forced unions, strengthening child protection systems, and safeguarding children in humanitarian and climate crises, while highlighting challenges in weak law implementation and limited child participation.

In a vital initiative aimed at ensuring no child dies from preventable causes, Save the Children, with financing from UNICEF, is implementing the MAMI project in Mozambique to support infants under six months at nutritional risk. By combining specialized healthcare with strategic cash transfers, this initiative addresses the root causes of malnutrition, empowering vulnerable mothers to provide life-saving care and nutrition for their babies. Through this integrated approach, we are protecting the most fragile lives and building a foundation for a future where every child can survive and thrive.

The humanitarian crisis in Northern Mozambique is escalating due to spreading violence, massive displacement (around 120,000 people, including 55,000 children newly displaced), and a severe funding collapse. The crisis is one of the world's most underfunded emergencies, with only US $73 million received against a required US $352 million. Humanitarian organizations call upon the international community, donors, and governments for urgent action, increased funding, and renewed commitment to address the rapidly growing needs.

At the launch of the 16 Days of Activism campaign, Save the Children, in collaboration with district partners, carried out community activities in Montepuez, Cabo Delgado. The objective was to strengthen the prevention of and response to gender-based violence, with a focus on digital violence against girls and women. Activities included marches, theatre plays, and community dialogues.