•    On 20th February IRIN reported that disaster officials and aid agencies are closely monitoring tropical cyclone Favio, due to make landfall in flood-drenched Mozambique on 20th February, as it crosses the narrow sea channel from Madagascar. A major storm hitting Mozambique's central provinces, where more than 120,000 people have already been displaced, could seriously hurt ongoing relief efforts. "It would be another emergency," João Ribeiro, the deputy chief of Mozambique’s disaster response agency, the INGC, told IRIN. However, he voiced confidence the government and civilian relief partners would be able to cope.

•    On 20th February Reuters reported that according to IFRC the number of people affected by the floods in Mozambique continues to rise more than a week after the Zambezi River burst its banks. The latest figures show a sharp rise from more than 86 000 to more than 120 000 displaced people in less than 48 hours.

    •    In Chupanga, one of the camps south east of Caia district, the figure rose from just 1500 to 5348 in less three days. Rescue and evacuation operations were still going on over the weekend.
    •    The demand for humanitarian help is high. Relief items need to be delivered now to avert a serious humanitarian crisis.
    •    Thousand of people gathered along the small dusty road near the Zambezi River waiting for their turn to receive emergency help. Thousands more have been sleeping in the open for the past 24 to 48 hours cooking the small amount of food that they managed to carry with them, while other are selling their belongings at a cheap price to feed their children. On Friday 16th February, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies launched an emergency appeal for 7,5 million Swiss francs (US$ 5.6 million/€ 4.3 million) to support the Mozambique Red Cross Society's response to the devastating floods.
    •    The appeal seeks to provide temporary shelter to 100,000 people in the four affected provinces, as well as distributing 5,000 tents, 15,000 tarpaulins, 40,000 blankets, 20,000 kitchen sets, bars of soap and 40,000 mosquito nets and also finance the provision of safe water to affected people and the construction of 500 latrines.

•    On 21st February Reuters is reporting that the very intense tropical cyclone Favio is forecast to strike Mozambique at about 12:00 GMT on 22nd February. Data supplied by the US Navy and Air Force Joint Typhoon Warning Center suggest that the point of landfall will be near 22.0 S, 36.0 E. Favio is expected to bring 1-minute maximum sustained winds to the region of around 222 km/h (138 mph). Wind gusts in the area may be considerably higher.