Mozambican architects want to help reduce the impact of climate change on the country's infrastructure, a subject they intend to discuss at the first congress of the professional association, to be held next week in Maputo.

A report published by the Green Severs portal states that the congress will be held on February 8 and 9, under the slogan "Resilience of buildings and challenges for professional practice", with the participation of Mozambican and foreign professionals in the field, as well as specialists in climate-related issues.

"The main objective we want to achieve is to bring the issue of climate change to the congress (...), so that we can reflect in an open and systematized way on how we can suffer less from the impacts of change," said Anselmo Cani, secretary-general of the Mozambican Order of Architects (OARQ).

Among the guests are the Minister of Public Works, the ambassador of the Aga Khan Development Network and Mozambican activist Graça Machel.

"The congress is an opportunity to jointly discuss ways to improve Mozambique's resilience to climate change," said Anselmo Cani, while acknowledging that it will never be possible to reach zero impacts, but it is important to reduce the damage.

For Cani, the damage can be reduced by improving land-use planning and building sustainable cities that are adapted to the climate and can withstand earthquakes.

"Of course this won't happen in a one-day meeting, but we believe that just this campaign we are running [is a start], raising the flag and saying that we architects and urban planners are here to help, will give us more of a voice because we can also contribute to this process of mitigating climate change," said the secretary-general.

The first architects' congress will take place while Mozambique is in the middle of the rainy season, which since October has caused at least 69 deaths, totally and partially destroyed 3,702 houses, 177 classrooms and affected 60 schools and 14 health facilities, according to the latest official figures.

At the event, architects will also talk about their challenges, including legislation for practicing the profession and the proliferation of false technicians who, according to the association, mainly harm the state.

The Mozambique Order of Architects was created six years ago and has around 350 registered professionals.

Mozambique is considered one of the countries most severely affected by climate change in the world, facing cyclical floods and tropical cyclones during the rainy season, which runs from October to April.