What You Need to Know
Mozambique’s power utility, EDM, reported that over 220,000 customers are without electricity in Gaza and Inhambane provinces due to severe weather. The outages have impacted multiple districts and cities, with restoration efforts underway. The rainy season has also led to significant loss of life and widespread disruption across the region.
Africa-Press – Mozambique. Mozambique’s power utility EDM announced on Tuesday that more than 220,000 customers were without electricity in the provinces of Gaza and Inhambane, southern Mozambique, after severe weather interrupted the power supply.
“Due to the bad weather felt in the southern region of the country, there is an interruption in the supply of electrical energy in some regions of Gaza and Inhambane provinces,” according to an alert issued on Tuesday by Electricidade de Moçambique (EDM).
In Gaza, the cuts affected the districts of Mabalane, Guijá, Chibuto, Manjacaze and Chókwè. In Inhambane, the impact was felt in the cities of Inhambane and Maxixe, as well as the districts of Jangamo, Inharrime, Panda, Homoíne, Morrumbene, Massinga and Funhalouro, among others.
The state-owned EDM confirmed that teams are on the ground to restore the system in the affected areas “as soon as possible”, subject to weather and safety conditions.
EDM has recorded losses of €2 million during the current rainy season and requires €8.1 million to restore the situation, the company’s president told Lusa in March.
The death toll for the current rainy season in Mozambique, which began in October, has risen to 311, according to the National Institute for Disaster Risk Management and Reduction (INGD).
The INGD database, updated on Tuesday, shows that the current rainy season, which continues until the end of April, has affected 1,071,791 people, corresponding to 247,470 families. Mozambique remains one of the countries most severely affected by climate change globally, cyclically facing floods and tropical cyclones between October and April.
Mozambique faces severe weather challenges, particularly during the rainy season from October to April. This period often brings floods and tropical cyclones, exacerbating the country’s vulnerability to climate change. The National Institute for Disaster Risk Management and Reduction has reported significant casualties and widespread displacement due to these climatic events, highlighting the ongoing struggles faced by communities in southern Mozambique. The power utility EDM has been working to address the infrastructure damage caused by these storms, which have increasingly become a regular occurrence in the region.
