Mozambique

Mozambique is a low-income, food-deficit country that is predominately rural. Ranked 182 out of 193 countries in the 2025 Human Development Index, 82 percent of the population live in extreme poverty. 

The faces overlapping challenges of conflict, poverty, malnutrition and climate shocks. HIV remains a leading cause of death.

Around 2.7 million people face food insecurity and need urgent support. Most Mozambicans cannot afford a nutritious diet, and malnutrition remains a leading cause of child mortality. 

Approximately 72 percent of young children are malnourished and 37 percent of children under 5 are stunted, with their growth and development hindered by long-term malnutrition.

Mozambique is one of the world’s most disaster-prone countries, facing recurrent droughts, floods and cyclones that, combined with conflict and economic instability, continue to erode livelihoods and deepen food insecurity.

During the 2024–2025 season, over 4.4 million people were affected by cyclones or drought. In the north, 1.6 million people in Cabo Delgado, Nampula, and Niassa are food insecure due to conflict and climate shocks.

In 2024, the World Food Programme (WFP) reached 1 million conflict-affected people in the north with life-saving assistance. However, limited funding forced WFP to scale down support to 345,000 in the second half of 2025.

WFP supports the Government of Mozambique in improving food and nutrition security and strengthening resilience to multiple crises. We link emergency response with early recovery and resilience-building efforts that address the root causes of vulnerability.