In the margins of the G20 Ministerial event on 30 June in Brindisi, an EU Humanitarian Air Bridge flight, co-organised also with Italy and Portugal, will depart to Mozambique, carrying 15 tonnes of life-saving cargo addressing pressing humanitarian needs.

Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarčič, who is attending the G20 event and the ceremony at the departure of the flight, said: “The humanitarian situation in Cabo Delgado, Mozambique continues to deteriorate at an alarming rate. We are sending a new EU funded Humanitarian Air Bridge flight to get vital aid to this hard to reach part of the country. I thank Italy and Portugal for providing the medical equipment and humanitarian cargo of the flight. It is essential that full humanitarian access is granted in critical parts of Mozambique to save lives.”

The flight is expected to arrive in Pemba, Mozambique, on 3 July 2021. Two more flights carrying additional humanitarian aid are expected to depart from Brindisi in the coming days.

Since the beginning of 2021, the EU has mobilised over €17 million in humanitarian funding for Mozambique, mainly to address the consequences of the ongoing internal conflict. EU aid helps to ease the suffering of the affected population including those internally displaced and host communities, provide education for children, while also better preparing communities to deal with natural disasters.

Background

The humanitarian situation in Mozambique, and especially in its provinces of Cabo Delgado, Niassa and Nampula is rapidly deteriorating. Nearly 2 million people in Mozambique are currently facing severe food insecurity due to the security situation, the drought, and the socio-economic impact of COVID-19. The fragile humanitarian situation in Mozambique's Northern Province, Cabo Delgado continues to worsen. An escalation of violence has internally displaced more than 700,000 people. At least 1.3 million people are estimated to require immediate humanitarian assistance and protection in Cabo Delgado and in neighbouring province of Niassa and Nampula.

The EU continues to advocate for greater humanitarian access and the removal of obstacles delaying the provision of the humanitarian assistance. The EU urges again all parties to the conflict to comply with international human rights norms and respect international humanitarian law.

In 2020, when many countries restricted traffic or closed their borders due to the coronavirus pandemic, the EU Humanitarian Air Bridge facilitated 67 flights to 20 countries in Africa, Asia and the Americas. More than 1,150 tons of vital medical and humanitarian equipment and nearly 1,700 medical and humanitarian staff and other passengers were transported.