OCHA and UN CERF support anticipatory action ahead of Tropical Cyclone Jude in Mozambique

On 8 March 2025, as Tropical Cyclone Jude headed towards Mozambique, the trigger thresholds set out in the country’s Anticipatory Action and Early Response Framework - Cyclones were reached. This prompted the immediate allocation of US$6 million in pre-agreed funding from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), which is managed by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

In collaboration with Mozambique’s National Technical Working Group on Anticipatory Action, led by the Mozambican government, this funding was used to provide critical support to vulnerable communities in Nampula Province.

Supporting those at risk ahead of the cyclone

The funding enables UN agencies and their partners to support over 290,000 people in the target region, including 153,000 women and girls. This support was provided through a series of anticipatory actions:

• Early warning messages to alert communities about the coming cyclone before it made landfall.
• The distribution of shelter kits, dignity kits, hygiene supplies and water treatment products for at-risk communities.
• Access to urgent services, including health, gender-based violence support, child protection, and water, sanitation and hygiene.

Shifting from anticipation to response

As forecast, Tropical Cyclone Jude made landfall in Mossuril District, Nampula Province, on 10 March, with maximum sustained winds of 140km/h and gustiness of up to 195 km/h. The cyclone continues to threaten Mozambique, with hundreds of thousands of people at risk from high winds and torrential rains, especially in Nampula and Zambezia provinces. A flooding alert has been issued for some of the major rivers in these areas. The collective framework also enables partners to provide early response to affected communities, thus ensuring that people are supported ahead of and during the cyclone, and through the early post-hazard phases.

Unfortunately, the country’s humanitarian response capacities are overstretched due to ongoing responses to two previous cyclones, Chido in December 2024 and Dikeledi in January 2025, alongside other shocks including cholera, food insecurity, conflict and political tensions.