In 2000 and 2001, severe floods struck large areas of Mozambique. The devastating impact of the flooding, and the relative lack of disaster preparedness among affected communities, provided the impetus and the opportunity for the Mozambique Red Cross Society to initiate a five-year community-based disaster preparedness programme in Inhambane and Zambezia provinces, with support from the Danish Red Cross. The basic strategy of the community-based disaster preparedness programme is for the Mozambique Red Cross Society to facilitate the creation of local disaster committees in each target community, trained and equipped to improve disaster response; this includes the establishment of community-based early warning systems. Published in 2007.