Mammoth task of returning life to normal after cyclone
So far, the main occupation for government, well-wishers and families following Tropical Cyclone Freddy has been burying the dead—511 as of Thursday, searching for those missing; rescuing and evacuating those endangered by the floods to safe havens and hospitals, sheltering and feeding the survivors. According to the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (Dodma), the survivors are being sheltered in 576 camps in all the 15 affected councils, while 1 322 were injured and are receiving treatment in hospitals or camps.
When all the displaced—as of Thursday 562 415—have been settled in camps, the next biggest task will be re-settling the cyclone survivors in more permanent homes after the deluge left most of its victims with nowhere else to go back to for shelter.
On the other hand, some survivors may not return to what remains of their houses or pieces of land for resettlement as those portions of land have proven to be flood-prone and therefore unfit for human habitation. Additionally, sooner than later the survivors being sheltered in camps are living separately from their families and will soon start agitating to be reunited with their spouses and children.
The other gargantuan task on government’s hands will be feeding the displaced until they are empowered enough to be able to leave the camps and stand on their own. The displaced—562 415 as of last Thursday—add to the 3.8 million food insecure population who were already receiving relief food aid from government from November 2022. The number of the food insecure until the next harvest will thus shoot to 4.5 million countrywide.
Feeding the 4.5 million and resettling those displaced by Cyclone Freddy will cost billions and will have to be factored into the national blue print starting with the current budget and for several financial years going forward.
It is obvious government is shouldering a huge burden that will require colossal funding. Inevitably this will force it to divert resources from some social as well as productive sectors.
The cyclone could not have come at a worse time when the country is just smarting from the effects of three socio-economic disruptions, the Covid-19 from 2020, the cholera outbreak since March 2022 and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Cyclone Freddy will thus exacerbate an already fragile economy. The Reserve Bank of Malawi has already said real gross domestic product which was this year expected to rebound and grow by 2.7 percent from 1.2 percent will have to be revised to incorporate effects of the cyclone.
Concurring with the central bank, the Malawi Confederation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry has indicated the cyclone has brought about significant impact on the business environment owing to disruption in power generation and water supply on top of road cuts. These, according to the chamber, are likely to reduce production and sales.
As a country we were far from being ready for Cyclone Freddy. We have had cyclones before and so we thought if another cyclone came, at worst, it could be like Ana or Idai in 2022. But Freddy had no precursor in its intensity and devastation.
I am inclined to think that not even the Department of Climate Change and Meteorology, which had for days warned about the cyclone’s landfall in the country, ever imagined it would be of this magnitude and destruction.
All said, what has stood out in the response to the disaster is the unity that Government and the opposition in and outside Parliament have so far shown. Just as Cyclone Freddy was unprecedented, their oneness in hearkening to the call of the disaster to save lives and alleviate suffering among its victims has also been unrivalled. This is the unity Malawi needs if it is to strategise on how best to move forward and most importantly, mobilise resources required for rebuilding.
At all costs, government also needs to safeguard and ring-fence the assistance it is receiving from well-wishers and development partners. No one should take their outpouring of love for Malawi for granted
