Mozambique Assessment & Response

Executive summary

In March–April 2019, Ark-Terra participated in an emergency mission that deployed medical staff, engineers, and social workers across Sofala Province after Cyclone Idai. Working with the Government of Mozambique, WHO, IOM, JDC, IsraAID, and Sheba Medical Center, we ran rapid assessments, integrated with the National Cholera Task Force, and supported treatment in a cholera field hospital and isolated communities cut off by floods. The IsraAID–Sheba team alone reached >3,000 people, while inter-agency operations scaled oral-cholera vaccination and EMT coverage across Beira, Dondo, Nhamatanda, and Buzi.

At a glance

• When/Where: March–April 2019 • Sofala Province (Beira hub; outreach to cut-off communities)

• Engagement: End-to-End Delivery (assessment → clinical ops → cholera response integration)

• Partners: Government of Mozambique • WHO • IOM • JDC • IsraAID • Sheba Medical Center • coordination with an Italian EMT field hospital in central Beira. 

• Impact highlights: >3,000 people reached; support to cholera CTCs/field hospital; daily participation in cholera task-force coordination.

What we did

• Assess: Rapid facility and community assessments across Sofala to steer personnel, supplies, and WASH support. 

• Integrate with cholera ops: Participated in the National Cholera Task Force (Beira) to align case management, surveillance, and RCCE with vaccination rounds. 

• Treat: Staffed cholera treatment and primary-care posts; supported an Italian EMT field hospital; ran outreach to flooded, road-inaccessible communities. 

• Coordinate & move: Worked through the IOM/WHO coordination cells for tasking, air/boat access, and data flow. 

The Triangle in action (Technology–Environment–Human)

• Technology: EMT Minimum Data Set & light IM workflows; cold-chain and treatment-area layout tuned for high throughput. Deploying off-grid household+community level water filtaration systems (systems were first demonstrated in the field and demos benefited local training).

• Environment: All-hazards operations in a flooded urban–peri-urban setting (Beira & districts); access via boats/helicopters/airplanes/temporary crossings; integration with OCV campaigns. 

• Human: Mixed clinical & community teams (medical + social workers) for case finding, risk communication, and adherence - coordinated with JDC/IsraAID networks.

Results & impact

• >3,000 people reached by the IsraAID–Sheba medical team through clinic days, field hospital shifts, and remote outreach.

• Cholera control reinforced: Participation in Beira’s daily task-force; contribution to CTC staffing and referral pathways as OCV exceeded 800,000 vaccinated in first rounds. 

• Inter-agency surge: Clinical collaboration with Italian EMT and coordinated missions through IOM/WHO hubs improved coverage and reduced treatment delays.