wfn.org | Africa - A new beginning after the floods

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FEATURE: Africa - A new beginning after the floods

MAPUTO, Mozambique/GENEVA, 29 September 2000 (LWI) - Like other roads in
southern Mozambique, the Maputo-Chokwe route still bears evidence of the
damage caused by severe flooding last February and March.  Repair is
ongoing, allowing access to places that had been cut off for months, but
large areas of land remain submerged under stagnant pools of water, turning
the southern part of the country into a land of numerous lakes.

"It might take two years for the water to disappear. For now that land
cannot be used even though some of it is fertile," a local trader says
pointing to the area where her maize field once stood.  Her lot has been
reduced to trekking considerable distances to find good soil and sufficient
land on which to support the family.

For many, however, it is like a new lease on life after surviving the
disaster, which affected over two million people and caused damage of up to
USD 500 million. The town of Chokwe, 200 kilometers northwest of Maputo on
the banks of the Limpopo River is in Gaza, the province that was hardest
hit by the flooding. A survivor summed it up thus: "We were bombarded by
water from all sides; on land and from the skies. We have never seen
anything the like of those floods."

Through the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) field program in the country,
Lutheran World Service (LWS)-Mozambique and other members of the worldwide
network of churches Action by Churches Together (ACT) more than 300,000
people received basic survival kits including tarpaulins, kitchen utensils,
food aid and seeds. The canvas came in handy for returnees to homes that
had been washed away by floods-it is a permanent roofing on most houses in
Gaza.

All the buildings in Chokwe have a tell tale mark of the flooding-two brown
lines. The first one, three meters off the ground, is where the water stood
for four days. The second, almost a meter off the ground, is more
pronounced. The water remained at that height for weeks. Both tell a story
of a harsh, forbidding reality, of how people had to stay perched on trees
for up to 96 hours before rescuers arrived. But the stain on the outer
walls is also symbolic of the people's resolve, courage and solidarity. "We
used trousers and capulanas (sarongs) as ropes to secure ourselves to the
trees in case we fell asleep. There were not enough twines for everyone so
the women held praying and story telling sessions to keep the children
awake," one survivor recalls.

The floods hit one of the world's poorest countries, a nation that was
beginning to recover from a 16-year-old civil war. Gaza lost most of its
schools and clinics in the low-lying villages. The pride of the province-a
well functioning irrigation system-has now been reduced to near ruins.

Access to clean water is a major difficulty for the people, with women
covering a distance of up to 50 kilometers in search of the commodity.
Other consequences of the floods include a 20 percent inflation rate that
has sent skyrocketing the prices of most basic items as well as the cost of
transportation by vehicles. The loss of 20, 000 animals has meant shortage
or lack of alternative means to ferry farm produce to the market. Without
livestock, the one asset that farmers rely on to plough fields the grueling
process can take several days.

ACT members are responding to the USD 8.9 million Appeal issued for
Mozambique. Reconstruction of infrastructure has begun with focus on the
worst affected areas. Some 457,000 people will benefit from the rebuilding
of schools, clinics, roads and supply of clean water.

"Many people helped each other during the floods by sharing whatever food
could be found. We now hope that communities can transfer that sense of
unity to the rehabilitation work. We want to help them in making the
transition from disaster to development very smooth," says Michael Hyden,
program coordinator, LWS-Mozambique.

(Edited from an article by Pamela Zintatu Ntshanga, Maputo)
  -Photos available

(The LWF is a global communion of 131 member churches in 72 countries
representing over 59 million of the world's 63 million Lutherans. Its
highest decision making body is the Assembly, held every six or seven
years. Between Assemblies, the LWF is governed by a 49-member Council which
meets annually, and its Executive Committee. The LWF secretariat is located
in Geneva, Switzerland.)

[Lutheran World Information (LWI) is the information service of the
Lutheran World Federation (LWF). Unless specifically noted, material
presented does not represent positions or opinions of the LWF or of its
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Lutheran World Information
Assistant Editor, English: Pauline Mumia
E-mail: pmu@lutheranworld.org
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