Projects

(Habitat for Humanity Australia Overseas Aid Fund)

Habitat’s work in supporting home partner families to build and rehabilitate simple, decent houses, has never been more important.  As United Nations data reveals, the world is experiencing a global housing crisis with about 1.6 billion people living in substandard housing and 100 million people homeless.  But Habitat has shown that building houses does much more than put a roof over someone’s head.  In clean, decent, stable housing:

• Families can provide stability for their children
• A family’s sense of dignity and pride grow
• Health, physical safety and security improve
• Education and job prospects increase

Habitat for Humanity Australia, through its Overseas Aid Fund, is working to increase this transformational ability of good housing by closely entwining the provision of housing solutions with poverty alleviation measures such as health and hygiene education, water and sanitation, livelihood development and civil society development.

Cebu Dumlog Housing Village Project, Metro Cebu, Philippines

In 2005, HFHA entered into a cooperative partnership with Bethlehem Communities Australia (BCA), Communities for Communities and HFH Philippines to implement the Cebu Dumlog Housing Village Project.  The project aims to house some 360 families in a newly developed village on land purchased and developed by BCA.  The occupants of the village will be families from several locations including the Inayawan dump site in Metro Cebu, fisher folk from surrounding settlements and families from other urban poor groups.  A range of other community partners are providing community development inputs including skills development and income generation.  The project is ongoing with major site development works concluded in March 2008.  Construction of the first houses is approaching.

Phnom Penh Urban Community Development Project, Cambodia

Based on the success of an urban settlement upgrading initiative implemented in Phnom Penh with HFH International - Cambodia, The Charitable Foundation agreed to fund a further project in Phnom Penh through HFHA in 2007.  The Phnom Penh Urban Community Development Project commenced in October 2007 and aims to assist 500 families who are currently living in substandard housing and/or have poor domestic sanitary systems in 6 urban relocation sites by September 2010.  The project will enhance local community governance through the development of community-based associations; improve housing through a combination of core house construction, house repairs and economic wellbeing for the beneficiary families.

Siem Reap Integrated Community Development Project, Cambodia

Building on the experience of the Phnom Penh Urban Housing Development Initiative, HFHI-C developed a five year strategic plan to focus its efforts on 6 needy provinces including Siem Reap Province.  Despite being a significant destination for tourism, Siem Reap Province is the second poorest province in the country. This project aims to assist 338 families in two communes with improved housing through core house construction, house renovations and construction of sanitary toilets; and a further 620 families with access to safe drinking water through the installation of community water pumps.  As with the Phnom Penh Urban Community Development Project, the project will also work towards strengthening local community governance and improving the health and economic wellbeing of beneficiary families through the provision of health and hygiene education, skills training and micro-credit loans for small business development.

Rainbow Village Project, Rach Gia City, Kien Giang Province, Vietnam

HFHI-V has been working to address pressing housing and development needs in Vietnam since 2003, establishing its presence in Kien Giang Province, Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai and Tien Giang Province. Within Rach Gia city in Kien Giang Province, a community of approximately 120 families have made their home in the city’s garbage dump in Vinh Quang Ward.  These families literally live and work ‘on’ and ‘in’ the garbage dump.  In addition to extremely poor living conditions, the families face numerous other difficulties including very high rates of illiteracy; few opportunities to develop alternative livelihoods due to a lack of vocational skills and micro-finance, limited access to educational, health and other social services resulting from the lack of formal registration documents.

HFHI-V and its principal implementing partner, the Catalyst Foundation, with support from Communities for Communities and HFHA, have secured a land package from the Provincial Government with space for 119 houses and a vocational training centre.  The project aims to increase the standard of living, and reduce child labour and human trafficking in the target community through an integrated program of house construction, education, health education and livelihood development.

Within the city of Phnom Penh, up to 250,000 people live in squatter settlements, slums and various poor urban communities. These communities often remain extremely vulnerable with a lack of secure tenure, safe shelter or basic services. Settlements often appear in an any conceivable empty space, from courtyards and rooftops, to the sides of railway tracks, riverbanks and swamps. HFHA, with the support of International Children’s Care Australia and HFHI-C, is implementing a project to work in partnership with the Stoeng Meanchey dumpsite residents.

As a result of this project, 50 families will be living on secure land and in decent, affordable houses with access to safe water and basic sanitation. Primary health care training will be undertaken with the aim of improving the health of up to 250 children currently living in the dumpsite, in addition to undertaking financial management training and income generation support in order to increase the income earning capacity of the community members. This project also specifically aims to strengthen the local leadership capacity through forming strong community groups.

Bitung Refugee Resettlement Project, North Sulawesi, Indonesia

Between 1999 and 2000, following a series of natural disasters and subsequent ethnic and cultural tension on the islands around North Sulawesi, tens of thousands of people fled to regional towns such as Manado and Bitung for safe refuge. The majority of the Internally Displaced Peoples (IDPs) are concentrated in Bitung, located 200km from the city of Manado. There are currently 862 families (3955 people) living in temporary shelter in seven refugee camps. One of the refugee camps, called ‘Dembet’, has 125 families (400 people) currently living in temporary shelter. As a result of the forced relocation, these families have extremely limited capacity to improve their quality of life. They continue to live in sub-standard, unhygienic houses – often constructed from old discarded materials (eg corrugated iron, wooden sheeting). Many families continue to use tarpaulin sheets for cover from the elements. The community has limited capacity to generate a reliable income to support themselves.

With the support of Orica Limited, HFHA and HFH Indonesia will work in close partnership with the Dembet community in their relocation to a nearby site with secure land tenure and shelter in the form of a permanent, decent house. This project ensures access to safe water and sanitation facilities are available within the community. Additionally, a vegetation regeneration initiative will be completed and financial management and income generation support will be provided to the community.

Philippines Disaster Response Project, Manila, Philippines

On the 26th of September 2009, Tropical Storm ‘Ketsana’ hit Manila, bringing a month's worth of rain in the space of 12 hours. The torrential rain triggered severe flooding, submerging more than 80% of the city. Local residents, unprepared for the magnitude of the downpour, were forced to relocate to the rooftops to avoid being swept away by the rising waters.  About 80 percent of Manila was inundated, with over 3.9 million had been affected. As the flood waters recede, the level of destruction become apparent. Scores of impoverished families, living in makeshift slum-settlements beside the rivers and creeks, have completely lost their homes. 

With the generous support of The Charitable Foundation, HFHA and HFH Philippines are working with the people of Manila in the aftermath of Ketsana. This Disaster Response project involves the distribution of over 550 emergency home repair kits to severely affected families. The project also entails a ‘food/water-for-work’ initiative, whereby people assisting in the recovery effort and those in the lowest socio-economic group, are provided with basic, essential food packs.

Turabi School Development Project, Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan

The country of Afghanistan continues to walk a long road of reconstruction, recovery and stability. HFHI-Afghanistan (HFHI-Afgh) has been actively working with families and communities in the Balkh province since 2002. In addition to HFHI-Afgh’s general housing reconstruction program, HFHA is working closely with HFHI-Afgh in the development of the Al-Turabi school, a local primary school. The primary school is under significant financial stress and does not have sufficient classrooms for the students to attend school. Additionally, the school sanitation system is extremely unhygienic - no piped water is available within the school. With the support of Wesley College, HFHI-Afgh will support the Al-Turabi school in the construction of additional classrooms, and in the coming years aims to provide additional support through installing a safe water supply & sanitation system with the school.

Myanmar Housing Recovery and Rehabilitation Project

On May 2-3, 2008 Tropical Cyclone Nargis hit the southern coast of Myanmar and hitting the country’s largest city, Yangon. More than 130,000 children, men and women were killed and an estimated 2.4 million affected.  With the support of Baptist World Aid Australia and International Children’s Care Australia, HFHA is working closely with World Concern in Myanmar on the recovery and rehabilitation of communities in the country’s South. The Myanmar Housing Recovery and Rehabilitation Project is supporting families and communities by; building disaster resilient houses to better withstand storm winds and flooding; constructing more safe community buildings, such as schools; and incorporating rainwater harvesting systems and sanitation systems into all reconstruction activities.

Poverty Housing in the Asia Pacific Region

"A Right to a Decent Home” is an extensive survey of the housing landscape in the Asia-Pacific region. The report, the first of its kind by Habitat for Humanity, examines the state of poverty housing conditions, the causes and effects of substandard housing and initiatives needed to improve housing conditions. Read more

With thanks to our Principal Sponsor Orica