SCIENTISTS say human-driven climate change has intensified recent floods across Southern Africa, while weak infrastructure, poverty and shrinking humanitarian aid have left millions dangerously exposed to the disaster, Climate Home News reported.

New analysis from the World Weather Attribution (WWA) group shows that the extreme rainfall which battered parts of Southern Africa in recent weeks was significantly amplified by global warming. Researchers describe the catastrophe as a stark example of ‘climate injustice,’ where communities that contributed least to global emissions are paying the highest price.

According to the WWA team, 10-day rainfall events across the region are now roughly 40 percent heavier than they were before the industrial era. The trend is primarily linked to greenhouse gas emissions, with the most recent episode also influenced by a weak La Niña system. While such intense rainfall remains uncommon, scientists said it would have been far less destructive in a cooler world.

The floods have already killed more than 100 people in Mozambique alone since heavy rains began in late December. Entire neighbourhoods have been destroyed, forcing families from their homes. Researchers say rapid urban growth, poor land-use planning and the spread of informal settlements have worsened the impact, turning heavy rain into a humanitarian emergency.

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Speaking at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2026 in Davos-Klosters, Southern Africa focal point for the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre, Ms Renate Meyer, explained that the WWA now assesses not only weather patterns but also social conditions when examining climate disasters. She said understanding exposure and vulnerability is essential to grasp why the damage is so severe.

Ms Meyer noted that countries such as Mozambique, South Africa, Eswatini and Zimbabwe are already accustomed to floods and droughts. However, the increasing frequency of extreme events is causing deeper harm. Communities are facing repeated displacement, economic losses, health crises and long-term psychological stress.

Professor of climate science at Imperial College London, Friederike Otto, said the floods highlight a profound moral failure. She described the crisis as ‘a textbook case of climate injustice,’ pointing out that affected populations have gained nothing from fossil fuel industries yet are losing lives, homes and livelihoods.

Otto argued that disasters driven by warming temperatures can no longer be dismissed as natural events. They are the outcome of a global system that has failed to reduce emissions. She said the technology to prevent further damage already exists, but political leaders must place people’s safety above short-term economic interests.

Health and social risks intensify

Humanitarian groups warn that the scale of suffering continues to grow. WaterAid said more than 800,000 people in Mozambique and Malawi have been affected, with thousands now living in temporary shelters. Deaths and missing persons are still being recorded.

Launching an emergency appeal, WaterAid Southern Africa Director, Mr Robert Kampala, said the floods are among the worst ever experienced in the region. He warned that the disaster is fast becoming a public health emergency, as contaminated water supplies and overcrowded shelters raise the risk of cholera and other diseases.

Vulnerable groups affected

Ms Meyer added that women and girls are facing particularly severe risks. Over 11,500 pregnant women and nearly 169,000 women of reproductive age have been impacted. Many are living in cramped shelters with limited access to healthcare, increasing the likelihood of premature births and low birth weight.

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People with disabilities are also disproportionately affected when shelters lack ramps, accessible toilets and support services. Meyer said such barriers force individuals to remain in dangerous areas, turning climate exposure into avoidable loss.

Children are among the most vulnerable. Around 40 percent of children in Mozambique are already malnourished, and repeated exposure to floods, droughts and cyclones leaves little time for recovery. Meyer said this cycle steadily erodes their chance of building long-term resilience.

Homes no longer built for today’s climate

A climate researcher at Mozambique’s national meteorology institute (INAM), Bernardino Nhantumbo, said the floods reveal a dangerous clash between a rapidly changing climate and fragile housing systems.

“When nearly 90% of homes are built from sun-dried earth, they simply cannot survive this level of rainfall,” he said. Entire villages have collapsed, demonstrating that communities are facing weather conditions their infrastructure was never designed to withstand.

Rising needs, shrinking support

Aid organisations on the ground say funding cuts are worsening the crisis. ActionAid Mozambique said reduced humanitarian assistance combined with climate impacts is leaving thousands without protection.

In Manhiça district, resident Elsa Manhique said she fled with nothing as floodwaters destroyed her home. “Everything was taken by the water. The houses collapsed. We left without clothes, documents or anything,” she told the charity.

Acting Head of ActionAid Mozambique, Marcia Cossa, said the country is among the most climate-vulnerable in the world, facing increasingly severe floods, cyclones and droughts. Yet international aid is declining even as needs grow. “That rollback is costing lives,” she said.

Save the Children also warned that thousands of children are in danger, with some families rescued by boat from submerged areas. Shelters are overcrowded, in some cases housing both people and livestock, creating major hygiene and health risks.

Country Director, Ms Ilaria Manunza, said the floods are unfolding within a wider humanitarian crisis. With heavy rains expected to continue and emergency services stretched thin, she urged urgent international support to prevent the situation from worsening.

Building resilience

The WWA study stressed that protecting communities from future floods will require stronger policy implementation, improved coordination across river basins and major investment in infrastructure. Researchers also called for better early warning systems and community training to help people prepare for, respond to and recover from extreme weather.

They concluded that as climate extremes become more intense, addressing both environmental and social vulnerabilities is no longer optional—but essential for survival.