Mozambique

Introduction

Northern Mozambique is facing a severe and compounding humanitarian crisis driven by conflict, displacement, climate shocks and disease outbreaks, making daily life a constant struggle.

Violence in the northern regions has intensified in recent years, with attacks, abductions and the use of explosives by armed insurgent groups linked to the Islamic state disrupting communities and forcing repeated displacement.

In 2026, millions of people need assistance, with close to 1.6 million in the north alone. Recent floods, and food insecurity have increased the total number of people in need to around 3.75 million across the country.

Civilians continue to bear the brunt of the conflict, lacking access to basic services and exposed to protection risks. Displacement is recurrent, with many families forced to flee multiple times. Natural hazards such as cyclones, floods and droughts have further worsened food security and livelihoods.

Facts & figures

Through its humanitarian efforts, the EU provides vital support to those most in need.

around 3.75 million people in need of humanitarian assistance

What are the needs?

Humanitarian needs remain very high while the crisis is underfunded. Around 1.6 million people in Northern Mozambique require protection, food, nutrition, health care, education, water, sanitation and shelter.

Displaced people

This includes approx. 660,000 internally displaced people, of which above 500,000 only in Cabo Delgado, Niassa and Nampula, 722,000 returnees. Across the country, 3.25 million people are experiencing crisis or emergency levels of acute food insecurity (IPC 3+) and urgently need assistance.

a tightly framed group of women and babies face the camera, their faces blurred. They wear brightly coloured patterned headscarves and dresses, with babies carried in cloth slings on their fronts or backs. The scene conveys a queue or gathering of displaced or vulnerable families awaiting assistance. — Children outside an EU-funded makeshift school in cyclone-hit village.
© European Union 2025 (photographer: Peter Biro)

Natural hazards

Recent natural hazards have compounded the crisis. Severe floods in December 2025 and January 2026 affected approx 800,000 people, displacing more than 390,000, while drought and past cyclones have further strained communities. The cholera outbreak continues to spread, worsened by underfunding and misinformation, which has in some cases led to attacks on health workers and local authorities.

How are we helping?

In 2026, the EU has allocated a total of €24.5 million to support humanitarian efforts in Mozambique. An initial package of €18million focuses on delivering immediate, multi-sector assistance to populations affected by conflict in northern provinces, disease outbreaks and natural hazards in the north.

A further €3.5 million has been mobilised to help communities affected by recent floods and the impact of cyclones in central and southern Mozambique. Moreover in response to these events, the EU has also activated the EU civil protection mechanism and ReliefEU capacities with the delivery of relief items and deployment of experts to strengthen the response alongside local authorities and partners.

Also, to strengthen resilience, €3 million has been allocated to disaster preparedness initiatives, helping Mozambique better respond to recurring shocks, with a particular focus on conflict-affected areas.

aid distribution is under way in a village of thatched huts on red earth. Large white sacks and stacks of grey blankets are piled up. Humanitarian staff in orange reflective vests handle the supplies, while a woman in a bright red T‑shirt and green patterned wrap skirt carries a bundle of blue plastic‑wrapped items, likely blankets or tarpaulins, on her head. Other community members walk in the background, some receiving or carrying similar relief items. — A mass distribution of essential items in a region struck by a recent Cyclone.
© European Union 2025 (photographer: Peter Biro)

Through its 2026 budget, the EU will continue providing lifesaving, multi-sector humanitarian assistance to the most vulnerable people affected by the conflict in the northern Cabo Delgado province, including internally displaced people, returnees and their host communities. Along with logistics and efforts to strengthen disaster preparedness, support covers access to:

The EU also promotes compliance with international humanitarian law, full humanitarian access, and protection of civilians, combining humanitarian, development and peacebuilding approaches for a coordinated response.