Mozambique: Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan - Humanitarian Programme Cycle 2026 (Issued on 29 December 2025) [EN/PT]

Executive Summary

In 2025, humanitarian needs in Mozambique increased due to a significant escalation of the conflict in Cabo Delgado, the high vulnerability of people returning to their home areas amid widespread destruction of social services, and the impact of three major cyclones combined with El Niño–induced droughts. Communities faced severe food insecurity, limited access to health care and education, and heightened protection risks, particularly for women, girls, and children. Repeated shocks eroded resilience and deepened vulnerabilities, leaving hundreds of thousands in need of life-saving assistance.

In northern Mozambique, non-State armed groups (NSAGs) intensified attacks across Cabo Delgado and beyond, averaging more than two incidents per day. Violence against civilians surged to its highest level in years, with 730 security incidents—double the 2024 figures—and 466 direct attacks. NSAG presence now spans nearly all districts of Cabo Delgado, while attacks in Niassa and Nampula raise concerns of provincial spillover. The violence triggered repeated waves of displacement across Cabo Delgado, Nampula, and Niassa, forcing over 230,000 people to flee as of October 2025—the highest number since 2020. Movements were largely short-term and pendular, with 89 per cent of internally displaced persons displaced multiple times. Many conflict-affected families, including returnees, remained in their home communities despite ongoing threats, due to limited resources and insufficient assistance in displacement areas.

Humanitarian access was severely disrupted by insecurity, airstrip closures, and mandatory military escorts. Humanitarian operations in several affected districts were temporarily suspended as insecurity forced the relocation of aid workers and prompted some government staff and contractors to flee. While limited responses have since resumed, progress remains constrained by fragile access conditions. Rising IED incidents further complicate the response, as government reluctance to acknowledge contamination risks hampers mitigation.

Insecurity deepened existing vulnerabilities and heightened protection needs. According to the Children and Armed Conflict report, grave violations against children increased by 525 per cent between August 2024 and July 2025, including widespread abductions and the recruitment and use of children by non-State armed groups. Reports of gender-based violence and exposure to extreme trauma rose sharply; in Chiúre, 77 per cent of newly displaced people reported experiencing symptoms of psychological distress.

Life-saving assistance remained critical for communities in conflict-affected districts. Although the agricultural season was generally favourable and the number of people in IPC Phase 4 (Emergency) had decreased, overall food insecurity continued to worsen. The population in IPC Phase 3 and above rose from 865,000 between October 2024 and March 2025 to 900,000 between October 2025 and March 2026 in Cabo Delgado. This deterioration was driven by limited support during the previous agricultural campaign, recurrent displacement, disrupted markets, and the loss of livelihoods. Access to basic social services also remained out of reach for many of the province’s most vulnerable residents. Of the 28 health facilities not functioning as a result of the conflict as of 2022, only five had been rehabilitated by 2024, leaving large areas without adequate medical coverage. The combined effects of insecurity, disrupted services, and repeated violence against civilians continued to erode community resilience and strain the humanitarian community’s capacity to deliver essential assistance where it is most needed.

The surge in violence sharply increased gender-based violence, sexual exploitation, and loss of livelihoods. Women and girls, constituting over half of those displaced, are disproportionately affected, facing insecurity, early marriage, and restricted access to education, livelihoods, and health care. Limited access to reproductive health services and safe spaces compounded women’s vulnerability, with reported increases in unintended pregnancies and maternal health complications due to disrupted services. Additionally, many women have become sole heads of households after male family members were killed, abducted, or forcibly recruited.

Mozambique’s economy experienced a sharp downturn following the contested 2024 elections. Widespread protests and political unrest contributed to an almost 5 per cent contraction in GDP in the final quarter of the year. The post-election period was marked by intense, sustained demonstrations across the country, further straining public services, eroding investor confidence, and deepening vulnerabilities in an already fragile economic landscape. At the same time, foreign reserves fell to precarious levels, weakening the central bank’s capacity to stabilize the Mozambican currency and finance essential imports, particularly fuel and key food staples.

In 2026, insecurity in northern Mozambique is expected to persist and expand, with NSAGs continuing mobile raids, abductions, extortion, and informal taxation along key routes, mining areas, and coastal zones. These dynamics are likely to further constrain livelihoods and humanitarian access. Attacks are expected to spread to mining areas, transport corridors, and tourism hubs, while IED threats and maritime insecurity remain high.

Humanitarian operations will face severe constraints due to security escort requirements, road blockages, flooding, funding shortfalls, and bureaucratic impediments, including costly visa and work permit delays and increasing government oversight that risks compromising humanitarian principles. Funding gaps will limit recovery efforts and may reverse development gains, leaving essential services largely non-functional. At the same time, rising community tensions driven by scarce resources and unmet needs underscore the urgency of strengthened engagement, transparency, and conflict-sensitive approaches to maintain trust and ensure equitable assistance.

Against this backdrop, the 2026 Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan require US$348 million to meet the most urgent humanitarian needs. This includes$265 million to assist 919,000 people most vulnerablein severity 4 areas.