New houses for 54 Filipino families

Source: http://www.pah.org.pl

By the beginning of January we distributed construction materials for 183 families from Bantayan Island, Cebu Province in the Philippines. 54 of those families already have new homes. The construction works are still ongoing and we are planning to reconstruct 800 houses.





With the materials distributed, by the start of the year we already built 54 houses with the help of local carpenters whom we also trained. Impoverished Filipino families frequently do not have the knowledge on how to ensure that their houses have stable structure and therefore they require specialist support. Before local families start reconstructing their houses, we organise meetings during which we discuss the basic techniques of reinforcing the house structure and roof. We distribute manuals and guidelines prepared by an architect. During the next stage we organise meetings with the whole group of beneficiaries, during which we discuss the house reconstruction system in co-operation with the carpenters. Each carpenter supports a group of 10 families. Each subsequent house is erected jointly by all families in a group – a bayanihan – which is a form of traditional neighbourly assistance in a barangay.

The assistance consisting in house reconstruction will include the most impoverished families living in several barangays (or villages) on Bantayan Island (including, but not limited to the Sungko, Kabangbang, Beigad barangays).

The house reconstruction project is carried out in co-operation with the international group of engineers and builders from Young Pioneers Disaster Response Team. With their help, at the end of 2013 we erected a model house which had been constructed in such a way so as to make the best possible use of the materials provided to the beneficiaries. We pay special attention to the house’s durability and providing the families with as much space as possible. Thanks to its more robust structure, the building model we created is better than most houses on the island and it creates an opportunity to increase the safety of families during the natural disasters that regularly hit the Philippines. Our goal is to provide shelter for as many families as possible, and therefore we focused on erecting a simpler, and at the same time a more robust structure. The cost of erecting one house is PLN 850.

Please remember that we are still accepting donations for the victims of the typhoon in the Philippines.

Payments can be made to:

The bank account: BPH S.A. 16 1060 0076 0000 3310 0016 1160 (until 30 June 2014)
The bank account: BPH S.A. 91 1060 0076 0000 3310 0015 4960 with annotation “the Philippines”; IBAN number: PL91 1060 0076 0000 3310 0015 4960
Via the PAH website: make a donation online
We also encourage you to support our PAH SOS Club.

Polish Version: http://www.pah.org.pl/nasze-dzialania/19/5161/coraz_wiecej_filipinczykow_ma_juz_dach_nad_glowa