HFH Indonesia Receives Over US$1 Million Commitment For Post-Earthquake Reconstruction In West Sumatra And West Java
Christian Aid Ministries And Korean Steel Company POSCO Send Volunteers To Aid Rebuilding
JAKARTA, 22nd February 2010: Habitat for Humanity Indonesia has received a shot in the arm through funding commitments for its post-earthquake reconstruction efforts in West Sumatra and West Java. To date, HFH Indonesia has more than US930,000 of commitments for West Sumatra while its program in West Java has garnered more than US450,000.
Volunteers from US-based Christian Aid Ministries helping HFH Indonesia to rebuild houses in earthquake-hit West Sumatra.
Korean university students mobilized by Korean steel giant POSCO to lend a hand to Habitat’s reconstruction in West Java.
New donors supporting HFH Indonesia in rebuilding in West Sumatra include United Nations’ Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs which will provide US100,000 for cash grants and house repairs. Christian Aid Ministries, a non-governmental organization based in Ohio, USA, will donate US276,000 and provide volunteer labor for the construction of 120 houses in West Sumatra. CAM previously supported HFH Bangladesh’s reconstruction program following Cyclone Sidr. Accounting firm Ernst and Young also committed US15,000 for house construction in West Sumatra.
To help HFH Indonesia rebuild lives and communities in West Java, local energy and food companies PT Shell and PT Nutrifood are each donating to build a school.
In West Sumatra, eight houses are under construction and eight have been completed. Progress has been slowed due to rains. Deliveries of construction materials are hampered by roads partially blocked by debris from landslides. Nonetheless, HFH Indonesia is pressing on with partners and volunteers lending much welcome support. Volunteers from Christian Aid Ministries have begun to work alongside Habitat families and skilled workers to build houses.
On 30th September 2009, a 7.6-magnitude earthquake tore the Indonesian city of Padang in West Sumatra. More than 1,100 were reportedly killed while government data indicated that over 200,000 houses were either severely or moderately damaged.
Over in the earthquake-struck Pangalengan subdistrict, Bandung regency, West Java, 110 university volunteers from South Korea joined their Indonesian counterparts in building eight homes over 10 days. The core houses being built by the Korean and Indonesian volunteers each measure 18 square meters in size. The houses provide for the option of extension in the future if the family’s resources permit. Walls are made of bricks while the floor is laid with cement and tiles used for the roof.
Supported by Korean steel giant POSCO, the international volunteers worked hard to dig foundations, mix cement and build brick walls alongside eight local student volunteers. Fina, from the University of Indonesia, said: “The (volunteer) program is great because we could help people and learn about different cultures. With this program we can make a better world together.”
Ji-hye Em, who studies in Yonsei University in Seoul, said: “We are learning a lot of things about Indonesia, working together with Indonesian students and home partners. We are so glad to share our minds and love with the Indonesians. Even though our help is not so big, I hope that it will be a good opportunity to give hope to those people who suffer the loss of homes in the earthquake.”
POSCO earlier funded Global Village volunteer teams who built with HFH India in 2008 and HFH Thailand in 2009.
Under the reconstruction program in West Java, two houses have been completed while another 26 houses are currently under construction. HFH Indonesia plans to rebuild 1,000 homes and five schools in response to a 7.3-magnitude earthquake which rocked Tasikmalaya district, West Java, on 2nd September, 2009. More than 67,000 houses were estimated to be destroyed while many thousands were damaged.