BLANTYRE, Malawi, March 31 (Xinhua) -- Malawian Vice President Saulos Chilima has announced that the government intends to provide psychosocial support to people affected by Tropical Cyclone Freddy to help them recover from the traumatic experiences.
Chilima made the announcement on Thursday during his visit to Blantyre City, where he observed that many people were psychologically disturbed due to the loss of loved ones, businesses and property in the wake of the cyclone.
"If this is not taken seriously, we may end up having many people with mental health problems. As such, it is high time we considered providing psychosocial support to such affected people," he said.
He also advised people living in the affected areas to consider relocating to safer places to protect their lives and property.
"The government is committed to ensuring that those affected by the disaster are supported during this difficult time. We will work with different stakeholders to provide the necessary support to the affected people," he added.
He commended different stakeholders for supporting the displaced people with humanitarian assistance and he further appealed for more support from well-wishers across the world.
Chilima also called on the general public to embrace different initiatives, such as resettlement and reforestation drives, to prevent heavy losses due to disasters in the future.
According to a draft situation report released Wednesday by the country's Department of Disaster Management Affairs (DoDMA), over 2.2 million people have been affected by the disaster, with 676 people confirmed dead, and 538 people still missing.
The cyclone, which hit the southern part of the country hard from the night of March 12, also left about 2,000 people injured, and 650,000 people displaced.
