Mozambique: UN development chief visits flood-prone areas to observe agency project

On an official visit to Mozambique, the head of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) today toured a region where the agency is helping people relocate their homes away from flood-prone areas.

UNDP Administrator Mark Malloch Brown went to Gaza Province, which was severely affected by floods last year and where the agency has set up a programme to encourage the local population to move away from low-lying, flood-prone areas to safer locations on higher ground.

With funding from the Government of Italy, the project has so far provided wells and water pipes as well as tools and basic construction supplies in order to build new homes on higher ground.

Mr. Malloch Brown is scheduled to meet tomorrow with President Joaquim Alberto Chissano before travelling to South Africa to attend the UN World Conference against Racism.