International partners pledge $1.2 billion to help cyclone-hit Mozambique recover, 'build back better'.

Donors have pledged an initial $1.2 billion to help restore livelihoods and rebuild infrastructure destroyed by cyclones Kenneth and Idai in Mozambique, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) announced on Sunday.

According to UNDP, a two-day international pledging conference in the central Mozambique city of Beira - one of the areas worst hit by cyclones Idai and Kenneth - wrapped up with development partners committing financial and technical resources to support recovery interventions as the country deals with the challenging devastation.

The powerful tropical cyclones, which struck Mozambique in quick succession this past March and April respectively, killed hundreds and impacted close to two million.

'The important point coming out of this conference is that this recovery needs to be resilient. Mozambique is prone to climate change disasters, and those cyclones were not a one-time event - unfortunately - and the probability of these disasters reoccurring, many times in the future, is very high,' said Noura Hamladji, UNDP Africa Bureau Reginal Director, representing UNDP at the conference.

Ms. Hamladji added that 'there is a need to 'build back better', to look at infrastructure, resilience of communities in a different way. This is what this conference is all about, over and above requesting the solidarity of the international community to fund the reconstruction.'

UNDP said the Mozambique Government is establishing a Disaster Management Fund that includes a contribution to its capitalization of 0.1 per cent of the State budget, as well as contributions from partners. Regular external audits will be conducted to ensure transparency and accountability.

Partners, in particular UNDP, pledged to also support capacity development of the Reconstruction Cabinet, a platform established by the Government to ensure transparency and accountability in the achievement of results as well as promoting the development of norms for better reconstruction - building back better, and technical capacity to conduct feasibility studies and procurement, among others.

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