Miracle treetop baby a reluctant celebrity

CHIBUTO, MOZAMBIQUE - Rosita Mabuiango's birth in a tree above swirling waters 17 years ago thrust her into instant stardom, drawing global attention to the worst floods to hit Mozambique in recent memory.

The images of Rosita draped in dirty linen, moments after she and her mother were hoisted to safety by a helicopter, touched the world, helping raise funds for tens of thousands of flood victims.

But the teenager doesn't consider herself special.

"I'm normal, it's just a different way of being born," she says with a broad smile.

Rosita was born on March 1, 2000, four days after her mother clambered into a tree to escape deadly floods.

Clinging onto branches, Chirindza went into labor. Her mother-in-law held a capulana - a long sarong - under her to catch the baby and prevent it from falling into the muddy, crocodile-infested floodwaters.

The baby was named Rosita, after Chirindza's mother-in-law.

As Rosita approaches her 17th birthday, her mother said their survival was a "miracle for sure".

Rosita is just relieved that public attention on her has faded and that she enjoys a normal life, focusing on her schoolwork.

She wants to study petrochemical engineering - a strategic career choice with the recent discovery of gas reserves off the coast of Mozambique.

During school term, Rosita lives in Maputo with her godmother, Ruth Valera, a leading Mozambican fashion designer.

Valera, 49, had been in Lisbon for a fashion show when Rosita was born.

"It was amazing. I didn't even know if it was a boy or a girl," Valera said.

"This year we will have a normal birthday party with a cake and she will invite her mother, brother and friends from school, but next year we plan a big celebration for her 18th."

Rosita Mabuiango, who 17 years ago was born in a tree during floods in Mozambique, sits in her godmother's lounge in Maputo.John Wessels / Agence Francepresse