Zambia has dispatched a plane carrying a consignment of humanitarian aid worth about US$1 million to help survivors of Cyclone Freddy in Malawi.
The consignment of emergency food and non-food relief items was dispatched by a Zambia Air Force aircraft on Thursday.
“President Hakainde Hichilema directed the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU) in the Office of the Vice-President to provide relief intervention to neighbouring Malawi after President Lazarus Chakwera declared a State of Disaster following the devastating cyclone that left over 250 people dead in Blantyre and other cities,” DMMU National Coordinator Dr Gabriel Pollen said.
Dr Pollen, in the company of Ministry of Information and Media Permanent Secretary Kalunga, officially flagged off the relief dispatch to Malawi at Lusaka ZAF Base Airport in the morning.
“Zambia is providing humanitarian aid to Malawi to help survivors of the cyclone despite Zambia also facing devastating floods in many parts of the country,” Dr Pollen said.
He added that the President’s decision to direct the DMMU to provide humanitarian aid to Malawi was made in the spirit of good neighbourliness.
The dispatch to Malawi included metric tonnes of maize, beans, salt, tents, liquid chlorine, blankets, dignity kits, sanitary and hygiene packs, kitchen sets, circular mosquito nets among other items.
Media reports indicate that there are currently many casualties of Cyclone Freddy in Malawi, with numerous wounded or missing, and the numbers continues to increase.
