1.2 Million Mozambicans in Need of Medical Care Due to Jihadism

Arrival of internally displaced people from Palma at Pemba airport, Mozambique, April 9, 2021. | Photo: EFE

Published 21 May 2021

Displaced people do not have access to health services and medicines to treat COVID-19, HIV, malaria, and tuberculosis.

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday reported that 1.2 million people are in need of medical care in Cabo Delgado province in Mozambique, where 44 out of 132 health centers have been damaged or closed due to jihadist violence.

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"There is an urgent need to ensure full access to essential health services in all accessible districts and to establish mechanisms to improve it in districts where it is difficult to enter," WHO official Joaquim Saweka said.

Following attacks by the Al Shabab group in Palma city on March 24, at least 55,824 people have been forced to leave their homes, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

Currently, displaced people do not have access to health services and medicines to treat COVID-19, HIV, malaria, and tuberculosis.

Between January and March, Cabo Delgado also recorded 179,967 new cases of malaria, which represented an increase of 30.3 percent compared to the first quarter of 2020.

In military operations deployed in northern Mozambique since 2017, the jihadist group Al Shabab has caused more than 2,830 deaths, including more than 1,400 civilians, according to the latest figures from the Armed Conflict Location and Events Data Project (ACLED).

In the last four years, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has also counted over 700,000 people displaced by the armed conflict.