By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
South Africa on Sunday declared a national disaster over torrential rains and floods that have killed at least 31 people in Limpopo and Mpumalanga respectively.
The declaration was made by the head of the National Disaster Management Center (NDMC) and announced by the government. It allows national government to coordinate the response to the disaster.
According to the official directive, Dr Abel Sithole cited the immense scale of the destruction as the primary reason for the escalated status.
“I regard this occurrence as a disaster and, in terms of Section 23(1)(b) of the Disaster Management Act, 2002. I classify the disaster as a national disaster,” Sithole stated.
He noted that the severe weather has “resulted in the loss of life, damage to property, infrastructure and the environment, as well as the disruption of basic services.”
This move allows for the mobilisation of more resources and a unified response across all levels of government.
Sithole has called upon all organs of state to “further strengthen their support to the disaster management structures” and to ensure that contingency plans are fully activated to deal with the ongoing effects of the floods.
The NDMC will now oversee a multisectoral relief and rehabilitation plan to assist the affected provinces and begin the long process of rebuilding damaged infrastructure.
Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa said, “We need to reprioritise our budgets to intervene in these communities, so that life can get back to normal or even better than what it had been.”
The Minister confirmed that he will be meeting with all relevant departments to coordinate the recovery effort.
South Africa also dispatched rescue teams to southern Mozambique Sunday after a car carrying five members of a South African mayoral delegation was swept away by floodwaters in Chokwe, 200 kilometres (124 miles) north of Maputo.
According to the latest figures released by the Mozambican government on Friday, more than 173,000 people had been affected by the floods across the country.