1. Government commits more troops to guarding TOTAL installations as attacks in the rest of the province increase
cartamz.com reported on 30 November 2022 that five soldiers were killed by insurgents in an attack on Monday (28), in the district of Muidumbe, in Cabo Delgado, vehicle station in the village of Macomia. The reports were made by passengers who used the Macomia-sede/Awasse road. The attack took place at the beginning of the night against FADM men, who were on another patrolling mission, close to their position. The attack that killed five soldiers took place close to the Miangalewa Health Center, where theperpetrators, after the incursion, fled. Meanwhile, further north of Cabo Delgado, the FADM, through Colonel Salvador Paulo Mavita, announced the intensification of patrolling by the joint forces, in the region of Namoto and Pundanhar, on the banks of the Rovuma river, Palma district, with a view to make the exploration of natural and liquefied gas safe.
2. Cabo Delgado Police Commander reacts to rise of Napharama’s, seeks more control over them
The Provincial Commander of the PRM in Cabo Delgado, Vicente Chicote, warns that the emergence of a group of “local volunteers, called Napharamas” supposedly traditionally prepared to resist attacks by bullets and metallic instruments, during the pursuit of insurgents, should not be enemy’s place of refuge. At the moment, the enthusiasm and willingness of young volunteers to be vaccinated based on that belief is happening in the districts of Namuno, Montepuez and Balama, further south in Cabo Delgado province. Vicente Chicote, who was speaking on Monday 28 November in the city of Pemba, fears that terrorists could infiltrate those groups and take advantage of the distraction of people in the communities and continue to make incursions, which is why he wants greater collaboration between those forces and government forces. The commander of the PRM made these statements shortly after information circulated, according to which the “Napharamas” had killed people suspected of being terrorists in the district of Montepuez. Carta de Mocambique reported on 30 November 2022 that, in the district of Montepuez, the Napharamas have killed a young man, after he was accused by a woman of killing one of his relatives, in Mocímboa da Praia, where he used to live. It was also reported that the driver of a Chinese-run logging company was killed after being found with keys and other materials on his way to a camp to repair a broken down vehicle. Also in the Montepuez district, two young men were killed after being found in a field, and were unable to speak any local language. They were killed and their bodies abandoned in the same field.
3. World Bank suspends support to Mozambique state’s Disaster Management Fund, due to misappropriation
The World Bank suspended its support to the Disaster Management Fund (FGC), managed by the National Institute for Disaster Risk Management and Reduction (INGD). At issue is the misappropriation of more than 32.5 million Meticais (almost 10 million Rand) from the fund in the 2020 financial year. The freezing of support for the FGC was communicated to the Minister of Economy and Finance, Ernesto Max Tonela, late August, and its unblocking is conditional on the return of that amount, financed, for the most part, by the international community. In the letter sent to Max Tonela, the World Bank mentions the purchase of vehicles (worth more than 18 million Meticais); construction of water supply and sanitation infrastructure (to the value of 13 million Meticais); and the construction of a bridge over the Muecate River, in the province of Nampula (to the value of approximately 1.5 million Meticais). “Under the terms of numbers 3, 5 and 6 of article 2, of Decree no. 53/2017, of 18 October, which constitutes the Disaster Management Fund and approves the respective regulation, in conjunction with article 2 of Ministerial Diploma no. /2019, of October 7, which approves the Manual of Administrative and Financial Procedures of the Disaster Management Fund, the acquisition of vehicles and civil works are not eligible expenses for financing by the Disaster Management Fund”, says the letter.
In addition to violating the Mozambican government decrees, the irregular application of that money, says the World Bank, violates the provisions of the Financing Agreement and the conditions applicable to that type of financing. As a result, the World Bank has subjected the disbursement to the FGC of the 5 million USD for Year 3, to INGD presenting an acceptable Action Plan to guarantee the safeguarding of the Fund’s acquisitions to prevent possible future irregularities. Three months after the submission of the World Bank letter to the Ministry of Economy and Finance, no plan has yet been presented to unblock World Bank funding to the FGC, at a time when the country is preparing to face yet another cyclone season. The Contingency Plan for the cyclone season 2022/2023 presents a budget deficit of 7.4 billion Meticais.
4. Rwanda sends more troops to Mozambique
The Rwandan government recently deployed additional troops to Cabo Delgado where the Mozambican and Rwandan Defense and Security Forces have been fighting terrorists since July 2021, President Paul Kagame said.
At the request of the Mozambican government, Kigali initially deployed 1,000 soldiers from the Rwandan Defence Force (RDF) and the Rwandan National Police (RNP) to Mozambique on 9 July 2021 to combat insurgents operating since 2017 in Cabo Delgado. Troops increased to almost 2,000 by the end of 2021. Speaking on Wednesday (30 in Kigali, at the swearing-in ceremony of new ministers), Kagame said that Rwandan troops in Cabo Delgado exceeded 2,500 and that another contingent arrived in Mozambique earlier this week. He also said that the initial operation was a success and now Rwanda and Mozambique have agreed to pursue the insurgents where they have moved since the beginning of the offensive. “We have increased the troops because since our arrival in Mozambique many problems have been solved, in collaboration with the Mozambicans. In the areas in which we operate, the problem has been completely solved. But because the terrorists fled to other areas of Cabo Delgado, we were unable to reach all regions,” said Paul Kagame. Kagame added: “Apparently, the terrorists have fled to other areas outside our operational zone. We agreed with the Mozambican government to pursue the terrorists where they are now. That’s what we’re going to do.”
President Kagame said all Rwandan troops’ operations at Cabo Delgado are fully funded by Rwanda’s budget. “To be clear, we are increasing the troops since our arrival. There is not a single country or organization that has given us a single currency to use in these operations. It’s our country’s money that we use,” Kagame said. “With the few resources we have, we share it with others. Some people have said they will support us and we are waiting. If they help us, we’ll thank you. It should have happened yesterday, but it’s never too late to help. I wanted to clarify this because some people think someone might have sent us money secretly. We contribute to the few means we have and sacrifice the lives of our children and Mozambicans,” President Kagame said.
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