3/06/2026
Responding to Mozambique’s Worst Floods in 40 Years
Since late December 2025, Mozambique has been hit by its worst flooding in more than 40 years. Torrential rains have destroyed homes, roads, and essential infrastructure, affecting over 700,000 people and displacing hundreds of thousands. In several districts, entire communities have been cut off as water levels reached historic highs.
Against this backdrop, the Trafigura Foundation and our sister philanthropy, the Puma Energy Foundation, mobilised a coordinated emergency response to address the most urgent needs.
Direct cash support to families on the front line
To rapidly reach families who lost homes, livelihoods, and access to basic services, the Trafigura Foundation partnered with GiveDirectly. Through mobile transfers, more than 400 households in Sofala Province received 7,500 MZN (approx. USD 117) in emergency cash — enabling them to purchase food, hygiene items, temporary shelter materials, and other essentials.
This intervention forms part of a broader initiative led with Mozambique’s National Institute for Social Action (INAS), targeting around 3,000 vulnerable people. Beyond immediate relief, the grant also contributes to the development of MobileAid, a digital system designed to deliver emergency cash faster and more efficiently in future crises.
Restoring access to cut‑off communities
At the same time, the Puma Energy Foundation activated its long‑standing partnership with Airlink to respond to some of the most urgent logistical gaps. Severe flooding left entire areas unreachable by road, complicating aid delivery just when needs were accelerating.
Through coordinated airlifts, Airlink transported shelter materials, medical supplies, and clean‑water equipment into flood‑isolated districts. In Xai‑Xai alone, where over 620,000 people — more than half of them children — have been displaced, prepositioned stocks allowed humanitarian teams to deploy assistance immediately.
Complementary strengths, shared purpose
By acting together, the two Foundations were able to offer a broader and more strategic response:
- Immediate liquidity for affected families, so they can prioritise their own most urgent needs.
- Critical transport capacity for relief goods, reaching communities cut off by the floods.
- Stronger national systems, improving Mozambique’s ability to respond to future climate‑driven shocks.
As extreme weather events intensify across Southern Africa, these combined efforts reflect a shared commitment to strengthening resilience — both today and in the face of the crises yet to come.
