Tsunami Disaster Response

Encouraging effective material giving and

citizen actionThe Habitat for Humanity

experience…

Presentation Outline• What is Habitat for Humanity?• What is Habitat’s disaster response?• What worked? • What did not work?• What needs improvement?

What is Habitat?

Habitat for Humanity…• International, Christian NGO• Seeks to eliminate poverty

housing and homelessness• Works with people of all

backgrounds, races and religions

• Transformational & sustainable community development

What is Habitat’s tsunami disaster

response?

Disaster Response Objectives

• Provide transitional & permanent housing to at least 35,000 families

• Priority is to help families move out from temporary shelters

• Transition into regular Habitat program for long-term engagement

Core Strategies• Close partnership with the

community• Maximize strategic

partnerships• Establish Disaster Response

Technical Center as base for assistance

• Rebuild houses, rebuild local economy

• Joint management with local partners

What worked?

Community partnership …• Family identification &

prioritization• Land ownership and

boundaries• Community inputs in house

design• Supply of materials and

labor• Construction work and

supervision

Strategic partnership & collaboration…

• Recognizing the role of community leaders & local authorities

• Working with like-minded NGOs and agencies

– Sharing of expertise, resources– Collaboration in program

components

Disaster Response Technical Centers…

• Community-based production systems

• Provide technical expertise on house construction and building materials

• Local employment & skills training

• Supporting community-based enterprises

• Volunteer mobilization & management

Local leadership at the forefront…

• Better understanding of local context

• Quick adjustment to local conditions

• Preparing for transition to long-term development phase

…CASH donations worked!• Much more flexible than

material or product donations

• Helps the local economy

What did not work?

Problems arose when…• Donors dictate project location

and quality standards• Lack of cultural sensitivity• Material donations sent to

places far from disaster area (increased cost)

• Inconsistent policy implementation

• Unhealthy NGO competition

What needs improvement?

Need to improve on…• Coordination on the type of

assistance (who will help whom with what?)

• Consistency in policy implementation

• Having reasonable and consistent quality standards

• Involvement of beneficiaries

Thank you!