NDAMU SANDU
Zimbabwe has availed ZWL$274m out of the US$767m required for recovery and rehabilitation of the area affected by Cyclone Idai early this year, a Civil Protection Unit official has said, amid calls for upscaling of initiatives as the rainy season beckons.
A rapid needs assessment done by the World Bank showed that over US$767m is required for recovery and rehabilitation. The devastation caused by Cyclone Idai also left a trail of destruction in Mozambique and Malawi.
Presenting at a three-day workshop which began in Harare yesterday, a CPU director Meliqiniso Sibanda said 17 601 households were rendered homeless and 2 326 are internally displaced and staying in camps.
“Since the IDPs are in camps that place needs a few millimetres of rain and it floods again. We haven’t constructed a single housing unit and Econet has pledged to construct 500 out of 2 326,” she said.
Sibanda said plans for the houses have not been approved although architects insist they are climate resilient. Asked why construction of housing has not started since housing is a priority, Sibanda said there is no funding.
“We have no funding for the houses. Funding will be available through Econet. Government has not put money aside for housing,” she said. Cyclone Idai damaged 584km of road network and China has pledged to rehabilitate 20km using its standards.
Sibanda said Zimbabwean engineers will have to review the standards to ensure that the roads are climate resilient. Cyclone Idai claimed 341 lives and 344 are missing.
“Recovery initiatives are ongoing, they need upscaling. UNDP and other UN agencies and the African Development Bank, Econet and China are helping us.”
A representative from Malawi, Fyaupi Mwafongo, said the estimated cost of Cyclone is US$220.2m. He said the recovery costs are estimated at US$370.5m inclusive of the need to build resilience buildings.
In Mozambique, Cyclones Idai and Kenneth affected 1.8m people and it is estimated that 1.6m need urgent attention, according to its representative Nadia Adriao. She said 39 of national roads were affected.
So devastating were the cyclones that it is estimated that Mozambique will experience a slowdown in real GDP to 2.5 percent this year and inflation is expected to quicken to 8 percent by the end of 2020 from 6 percent, Adriao said. She said the recovery and reconstruction needs totalled US$3.2bn.
Financial resources pledged totals US$1.4bn. Of the pledge, US$1.15bn has been confirmed leaving a gap of US$1.8bn in the resources envelope required for recovery and reconstruction. The workshop is organised by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, Zimbabwe and the Africa Climate Policy Centre.
Its overall objective is to initiate a series of initiatives to support the integration of climate information services and climate change considerations into resilience building in climate sensitive sectors of the economies of Sadc countries.
