🇲🇿Mozambique

Mozambique lies between latitudes 10° and 27°S as a southern African country (approximately 801,590 km²) on the Indian Ocean coast bordering Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, and Eswatini, with a 2,470 km coastline. The landscape is dominated by a wide tropical and subtropical coastal lowland in the south and centre rising to a western highland: Monte Binga at 2,436 m (the country's highest peak, on the Zimbabwean border), the Manica Highlands, and the rugged Niassa plateau in the north.

The Zambezi River bisects the country before emptying into the Mozambique Channel. This strong relief gradient produces a diverse climate spectrum: tropical savanna (Aw) across most of the country, including the coast at Pemba, Quelimane, Beira and Maputo, drier conditions in the inland Limpopo basin, and cooler humid subtropical (Cwa) conditions in the Manica highlands.

Maputo sees highs of 26°C and lows of 14°C in July and highs of 31°C and lows of 22°C in January with 800 mm rainfall, mostly October–March. Beira records highs of 25°C and lows of 17°C in July and highs of 31°C and lows of 25°C in January with 1,590 mm. Nampula in the north sees highs of 26°C and lows of 17°C in July and highs of 31°C and lows of about 23°C in January with 1,070 mm. Pemba on the far northern coast registers highs of 27°C and lows of 20°C in July and highs of 31°C and lows near 25°C in January with 870 mm. Quelimane records highs of 27°C and lows of 16°C in July and highs of about 33°C and lows near 25°C in January with 1,460 mm.

Mozambique experiences recurring tropical cyclones and droughts with severe socioeconomic impacts. Cyclone Idai (March 2019) killed over 600 people in Mozambique and damaged or destroyed about 90% of Beira. Cyclone Kenneth struck about six weeks later in April 2019 as the strongest cyclone on record to make landfall in Mozambique, hitting the north.

Cyclone Eline (2000) worsened extensive flooding in the Limpopo Basin, which killed about 700–800 people and left some 330,000–460,000 displaced or homeless. Cyclone Freddy (February–March 2023) made two landfalls and became the longest-lived tropical cyclone on record. The 2015–16 ENSO drought severely affected southern Mozambique, part of a pattern of multi-year droughts recurring throughout the region.

Marine heatwaves in the Mozambique Channel add to regional environmental stress. Sea-level rise threatens coastal infrastructure. Climate-driven displacement pressures are mounting in coastal urban centers as impacts intensify. Rainfall patterns have become increasingly erratic, with cascading effects on agricultural productivity and urban water supplies.

Our archive covers 17 Mozambican cities with daily ERA5 reanalysis data going back to 1940. The hottest July afternoons are in Tete, with average highs around 27.7°C, while Lichinga has the coldest January nights, with average lows near 16.4°C. Comparing the last decade against the 1940–1970 baseline, mean temperatures across these cities have risen by about 0.8°C.