18 December 2007
Maputo — Flooding in the central Mozambican district of Buzi has driven at least 100 families from their homes, according to a report in Tuesday's issue of the Maputo daily "Noticias".
These families were living in the administrative post of Bandua and have all been evacuated to safer areas, in a camp set up by the district government.
Preliminary data indicate that 188 hectares of crops have been lost in the district. However, the local authorities say they possess sufficient seeds to allow the families affected to replant.
The level of the Buzi river is now falling, allowing overland communication with Buzi town to be re-established, albeit with difficulty. Buzi district administrator Sergio Moiane told "Noticias" that the road from Buzi to Tica, in the neighbouring district of Nhamatanda was now open. The ferry across the river, however, is still unable to operate.
Heavy rains have also begun to inundate parts of Mutarara district in Tete province. Mutarara was one of the areas worst affected by the January-February flooding in the Zambezi valley. Yet the Beira daily paper "Diario de Mocambique" reports that not one of the 13,000 houses planned for flood victims in Mutarara has yet been completed.
When reporters visited the government resettlement areas in Mutarara, they found that some of the houses now had roofs, but were still without doors, windows or proper flooring.
The project to build brick houses for flood victims was launched in June. The beneficiaries themselves were to be involved in the construction, while the government provided cement, zinc sheeting fro the roofs, and the wooden doors and windows. The government also pledged to recruit skilled workers (masons and carpenters).
600 houses should have been completed by the end of November, but Mutarara district administrator Alexandre Faite, admitted that to date only 115 houses have roofs. "Diario de Mocambique" in visits to three resettlement areas only counted four to six houses with roofs in each of them.
Residents say that building work stopped in September, when the cement began to run out, and the masons decided to go home. Some complained they were not being paid their agreed wages.
Faite said that masons are paid 2,000 meticais (about 89 US dollars) per house, and carpenters 1,000 meticais. But the money will only be paid when the work is finished. "There are no installments", he said. "Some claim they are hungry, in order to ask for the money in advance. But when they finish the house, they receive their payment".
Meanwhile, torrential rains over the past few days have made life difficult for many residents of the capital. Houses were inundated in poorly drained suburbs such as Mafalala and Ferroviario. The waters worsened the state of many of Maputo's already potholed roads, and added to the erosion that is threatening to wash away parts of the coast road.
Fields in the Maputo green belt were swamped leading to the loss of as yet unknown quantities of the vegetables planted there.
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