Another drought looming in the south

As parts of central Mozambique tries to cope with floods, the country's southern provinces face yet another drought.



"This year is going to be much harder than last year because the rainfall we have recorded [in southern Mozambique] in the first month of this year is lower if you compare with the same period in 2008," Mussa Mustapha, head of country's meteorological institute (INAM) told IRIN.



Southern Mozambique, which is arid, had been hit by a drought in early 2008. "The below average rains, which are much lower this year than 2008, and the high temperatures in the southern parts mean agricultural production is going to be badly affected," said Mustapha.



"We can say the wet season has already ended in the central and southern parts, and the drought has begun because the rains are moving away from this region."



Since October 2008 less than half the usual rain has fallen and farmers in the region are headed for their third consecutive year of drought. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, 450,000 people need food assistance and up to 150,000 face a critical situation.



The country has also been affected by the high cost of food: maize prices rose by almost 102 percent last year, leaving people more vulnerable than in 2007, according to the Community and Household Surveillance (CHS) conducted in southern and central Mozambique in 2008.



In the first ten days of January 2009, Maputo Province, in the south, received 2.9mm of rainfall compared to about 40.8mm in the first ten days of 2008.



The Famine Early Warning Network (FEWS-NET), which is funded by USAID, warned in November 2008 that crops planted in southern Mozambique had not received adequate rainfall.



"Also, a more worrisome situation is the long delay of the start of rains in the central region, which may compromise this year's agricultural season in that region," FEWS-Net said in its last report.



The World Food Programme recently appealed for  US$8.5 million to buy 10,840 tonnes of cereals to supplement household reserves and help families cope with high food prices until the next harvest, due in April/May.



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