©InfoThe British Red Cross worked closely with the residents of Delmas 19, in Port-au-Prince, to identify their needs and priorities for improving living conditions. As a result an integrated programme was developed, including support for:
- shelter
- livelihoods
- improving infrastructure.
Shelter
The shelter programme involves different approaches to supporting families, according to their situation, and includes house reconstruction, repairs, provision of materials for repairs and support for renting accommodation.
We are also training community members in building repairs and construction, including earthquake-resistant techniques. This is helping people make their shelters more long-lasting and resistant to bad weather, and will improve the community’s resilience to future disasters.
Livelihoods
In the first phase of the programme, small business development grants were given to 3,500 families whose means of making a living had been destroyed in the quake.
The next phase is about helping existing local businesses grow, which will in turn provide more job opportunities in the community.
Infrastructure
The first priority the community identified was to rebuild the drainage canal which runs through Delmas 19 and regularly floods houses in the neighbourhood.
In August 2012 this work was put to the test when Tropical Storm Isaac swept through Haiti bringing heavy rains and winds with it. This is the first time such heavy rain has not caused the houses next to the canal to flood.
The next phase of work includes rebuilding the market place in Delmas 19, which became a small camp after the earthquake.
Read about the other recovery work we are doing in Haiti
Updated October 2012
