Maputo, 5 March 2001:
Floods in Mozambique
So far the floods that are affecting the Mozambique provinces of Sofala, Zambézia, Tete and Manica have
affected about 400 000 people of which 80 000 are displaced and destitute and caused the death of about
70 people.
The Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia (INAM) has been providing weather forecasts
to the rescue teams and aid organizations. The participation of INAM has considerably improved with the
recently installed uprades of the satellite receiving system (PDUS) which now allows the reception of satellite
data from the METEOSAT satellite every 30 minuts and data from other satellites such as the IndoEx, GMS,
and GoesEast and West. This upgrade also included the Meteorological Data Dissemination (MDD) which
enables the reception on numerical produts and different charts used in weather forecasting and aeronautical
services. These upgrades are part of the POST EMERGENCY RECONSTRUCTION PROGRAMME IN THE
FIELD OF METEOROLOGY: PHASE I, which is financed by the Finnish Government.