CWS having a clear impact on recovery and reconstruction in Haiti


July 20, 2012

CWS supported the repair of a technical training school for people with disabilities through Service Chretien d'Haiti. Photo: Jason Knapp/CWS

CWS supported the repair of a technical training school for people with disabilities through Service Chretien d’Haiti. Photo: Jason Knapp/CWS

At the two-and-a-half year mark following the devastating January 2010 earthquake in Haiti, CWS can claim that the impact of recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction is clear, both for CWS and its Haitian partners: 396 homes, housing more than 2,000 people, have been repaired and built in fifteen different small communities and throughout the vast area of greater Port-au-Prince. Three thousand people who were living in dusty tent camps have returned home to their repaired houses.

In addition, 700 people in Port-au-Prince and 1,569 people in rural areas have started businesses through cash grants and micro-credit. About half a million people have received emergency food and non-food aid. Hundreds of children have gone back to school.

CWS, working as a member of the ACT Alliance, has continued a commitment of supporting communities, partnerships, collaborations and local Haitian initiatives, which are the keys to long-term sustainability.

This updated appeal, based on a recent report by CWS staff working Haiti, gives an overview of the various initiatives that form the CWS Haiti earthquake response. The CWS Haiti earthquake response and dedicated funding is scheduled to end June 30, 2013. However, CWS plans to continue development programs beyond June 2013.

The following are areas of CWS’s focus:

I. Housing and Community Reconstruction

CWS has focused reconstruction work on house repair for vulnerable communities in Port-au-Prince, as well as rural communities outside the city. All projects have been completed by Haitian construction crews using locally-purchased goods, generating employment and empowering Haitians to rebuild their own communities. For the remainder of 2012 and 2013, CWS will repair the buildings of several community-based organizations in particular, those serving “restevak” children.

A) People with Disabilities Housing Repair

Partner: Sant Kretyen pou Devlopman Entegre
Project Period: October 1, 2010-March 31, 2012
Budget: $425,000

This is the only program in Haiti focused on providing permanent housing for people with disabilities in Port-au-Prince, so that vulnerable displaced families can return home.

Achievements:

  • 213 houses repaired in the six communes of greater Port-au-Prince
  • Over 200 Haitian boss masons trained in earthquake-resistant building practices
  • Program completed

B) Host Housing Expansion, Repair and Construction

Partner: Sant Kretyen pou Devlopman Entegre
Project Period: October 1, 2010-March 31, 2012
Budget: $200,000

This program improves the housing of “host families” in CWS-supported agricultural cooperatives in the Northwest and Artibonite to better accommodate displaced persons who fled to rural areas.

Achievements:

  • 148 houses expanded, repaired or constructed
  • Program completed

C) Rural House Repair & Construction in Gantier & Boen

Partner: Servicio Social de Iglesias Dominicanas
Project Period: April 1, 2011-December 2012
Budget: $184,762

In the months following the earthquake, SSID, CWS and Christian Aid supported two camps of displaced families. In time, the organizations helped families to leave the camps and return to their land, and then began repairing and building homes for those in need.

Achievements:

  • 36 houses repaired
  • Constructed project warehouse/office, to be converted to community center when projects ends
  • 40 new houses constructed
  • Continuing to support this project in collaboration with both CAID and ICCO.
  • The current support is to build 70 homes and 70 latrines in the communities (CWS is funding a portion of this total project, CA and ICCO are funding the vast majority)

D) Rebuilding Community Institutions

Partner: To Be Determined
Project Period: June 1, 2012-May 30, 2013
Budget: $200,000

CWS will support the repair of community institutions, specifically educational centers and disabled persons organizations, which lack the support necessary to rebuild their facilities. CWS not yet started this work yet, but is starting initial assessments now.

II. People with Disabilities & Livelihoods

CWS partner Service Chretien d’Haiti had experience working with people with disabilities prior to the earthquake, and soon afterwards, the organization assessed how these individuals were having difficulty accessing emergency aid, and were particularly vulnerable in situations of displacement. CWS responded by supporting an integrated psychosocial and livelihoods program for this traditionally-underserved community. In this program and others, livelihoods support was an essential means of economic recovery. In 2012, CWS will continue to support programming for people with disabilities.

A) People with Disabilities

Partner: Service Chretien d?Haiti
Project Period: March 1, 2010-August 30, 2011
Budget: $1,450,416
This program, funded by the ACT Alliance, provided cash assistance, case management, counseling and livelihoods to people with disabilities in the Port-au-Prince area. It also was the only program in the country that focused on encouraging churches to integrate people with disabilities.

Achievements:

  • Over 6,500 people with disabilities participated in program events
  • 1,200 people with disabilities received $75/month for six months ($540,000 total)
  • Over 1,000 people received counseling and psychological support
  • 573 people with disabilities received grants to re-start a small business ($200,000 total)
  • 150 people with disabilities received prosthetic limbs

B) Empowering People with Disabilities

Partner: Service Chretien d?Haiti
Project Period: January 1, 2012-December 31, 2012
Budget: $519,000

This program will continue much of the work done in 2010 and 2011 with ACT Alliance funding, but will focus more on supporting livelihoods and educational opportunities for people with disabilities. Outreach to churches and psychosocial services will also still be a key part of the program. The program has begun and will be ongoing.

C) Small Business Recapitalization
Partner: Fondation Oecumenique pour la Paix et la Justice
Project Period: July 12, 2010-October 12, 2011
Budget: $40,000

This program provided working capital to people who had small businesses prior to the earthquake, and lost their capital during the earthquake. Partner FOPJ provided items to start the small business, along with training on how to manage a small business.

Achievements:

  • 123 families received working capital to re-start a small business
  • 90 percent of beneficiaries increased family income
  • This program finished in 2010

III. Agriculture

CWS has long supported agricultural communities in Haiti, and even those rural areas far from the earthquake’s epicenter experienced an aftershock of population movement, as over half a million people fled the city of Port-au-Prince and went to the countryside. By strengthening rural communities, CWS assists them to cope with the arrival of displaced people and seeks to improve the quality of life in these areas. This advances the decentralization of Haiti, which the Haitian government has stated is an important way to manage growth and increase the sustainability of the country.

Support to Displaced in Agricultural Cooperatives

Partner: Sant Kretyen pou Devlopman Entegre
Project Period: January 1, 2010-December 31, 2012
Budget: $747,000

This program continues CWS’s support of thirteen agricultural cooperatives in the Northwest and Artibonite departments, a program funded by Foods Resource Bank, and supplements this with additional micro-credit and support to earthquake victims who have fled to the agricultural areas.

Achievements:

  • Provided 40 percent more micro-credit in agricultural cooperatives
  • 928 women received micro-credit to start small businesses
  • 641 members received agricultural micro-credit
  • 1,099 people joined the coops as new members
  • Began construction of coop community centers in three coops
  • Two coops reached the milestone of having 1,000,000 Goudes ($25,000 US) in social capital available to give coop members microcredit
  • This program continues with the same activities

IV. Children

CWS supports children’s rights organizations in Haiti that are combating the phenomenon of “restavek,” in which thousands of children are forced to work as household servants and denied their basic rights. Longtime partner FOPJ provides education to restaveks, as well as other at-risk children, and is expanding to offer vocational training to young adults. The ASR Network is made up of 18 such organizations, and is a unique grassroots voice advocating for the rights of Haitian children.

A) Education for Peace

Partner: Fondation Oecumenique pour la Paix et la Justice
Project Period: January 12, 2010-December 31, 2012
Budget: $335,000

CWS helped FOPJ purchase a new educational center, to incorporate more at-risk children in the primary school program and to add six vocational programs for teens and young adults. CWS supports the regular operational costs of the school, as well as special initiatives and projects through which FOPJ serves the local community and combats the restavek phenomenon in Haiti.

Achievements:

  • Provided major support for the purchase of new “House of Hope” center, and equipment needed for vocational programs
  • New vocational training in cooking, sewing, cosmetology, plumbing, electrical and masonry
  • Regular support of ongoing education programs, to continue through 2012-2013 school year
  • Three-month vocational teacher exchange program with Caminante in Dominican Republic
  • Began a “restavek reintegration” program, doing outreach to rural communities encouraging families not to send their children away as restaveks. The outreach was done in the Gran Anse department of Haiti. FOPJ created a video about the plight of restaveks in Port au Prince and the “false promise” that if kids go to PAP, they will have a good life.

B) End Restavek Network

Partner: Aba Sistem Restavek Network
Project Period: January 12, 2010-May 31, 2013
Budget: $90,000

CWS supports this network of 18 organizations committed to ending the restavek system in Haiti, the only such network of local organizations focused on this complex issue. The support is focused on strengthening the network, and its member organizations, through training, administrative support, and capacity building. CWS is also connecting ASR with other children’s rights partners in the region to encourage peer learning. ASR conducts advocacy campaigns in Haiti and will be increasingly engaged in regional advocacy and international exchanges to be a Haitian voice speaking for the rights of children.

Achievements:

  • 15 organizations provided psycho-social activities for children to address earthquake trauma
  • Supported an office and general secretary for the network
  • ASR hosted the sixth annual “National Day Against the Restavek System” advocacy event
  • ASR participated in regional United Nations meeting on children’s rights in Dominican Republic
  • ASR participated in regional exchanges with children’s rights organizations from Brazil, Nicaragua, Uruguay and Dominican Republic. In 2012, will visit organizations in Brazil and Nicaragua.
  • In March, 2012, ASR leaders attending the CWS LAC Children’s Program meeting in Sao Paolo, Brazil where they met with peers from children’s organizations from DR, Brazil, Uruguay and Nicaragua. The ASR leaders also visited churches, universities, mosques, trade unions and other civil society institutions in Brazil to discuss Haiti and advocate for Haitian immigrants in Brazil.

C) Nutrition Program

Partner: To Be Determined
Project Period: June 1, 2012-May 31, 2013
Budget: $65,000
Church World Service will work with one or more local partners to conduct a nutritional study and implement a pilot nutritional program for children. The work will be done with the organizations that form the ASR network, and will have the goal of identifying and addressing malnutrition. This program has not yet started.

V. Logistics and Material Suppor

CWS partners responded within hours of the earthquake, delivering emergency aid to the affected areas. With extensive damage to Port-au-Prince, including the port and airport, much of this aid had to come through neighboring Dominican Republic, and CWS supported the logistics necessary to deliver such aid. CWS also distributed thousands of CWS blankets and kits, valued at nearly $500,000, which were donated by member denominations in the United States.

A) Logistical Support to Haiti

Partner: Servicio Social de Iglesias Dominicanas
Project Period: January 12, 2010-December 31, 2010
Budget: $543,021

SSID collected donations in Dominican Republic and distributed them in Haiti. In addition, SSID provided transportation of personnel and material aid, much from the ACT Alliance, to Haiti from DR, as well as managed customs procedures, maintained warehousing and assisted with purchasing. This initiative was funded by the ACT Alliance.

Achievements:

  • Over $1.2 million in donations given by Dominicans, transported and distributed in Haiti
  • 43 shipments of material goods transported to Haiti (items distributed to over 500,000 people)
  • 234 humanitarian workers transported between Santo Domingo and Haiti
  • Over 500 international and local volunteers provided services (transport, housing, etc)
  • Completed 2010

B) Material Support

Partners: All
Project Period: January 12, 2010-March 31, 2011
Budget: $74,540 (Value of donated goods $471,000)

Church World Service delivered and distributed, through local partners, material non-food aid that served tens of thousands of families in Haiti.

Achievements:

  • Distributed 39,300 hygiene kits, 8,600 blankets, 10,000 tarps, 5,000 school kits and over 2,000 baby kits.
  • Over 200,000 individuals benefited from distributions
  • Completed

C) Support to Displacement Camps

Partner: Servicio Social de Iglesias Dominicanas
Project Period: February 1, 2010-November 30, 2010
Budget: $60,000

This project provided two displacement camps with emergency support, including shelter, food, water systems and community kitchens. SSID worked with the communities to develop an exit strategy and in November, 2010, cash grants and food packages were given to families who wanted to leave the camps, and the camps emptied. SSID continues to work in these communities, particularly in the repair and construction of housing. This was a joint project of CWS, Christian Aid and SSID.

Achievements:

  • Emergency support provided to over 3,000 individuals
  • Provision of $150/family in cash and food to enable families to leave the camps
  • Completed

D) ACT Guest House

Partner: Service Chretien d?Haiti
Project Period: March 1, 2010-July 31, 2010
Budget: $73,000

SCH established a guest house for NGO staff and visitors, with ACT Alliance providing initial funding to rent, furnish and manage the guest house. After six months, the guest house became a venture of SCH.

Achievements:

  • Hosted more than 100 guests from over 20 organizations in the first six months
  • Provided organizations with meeting and training space
  • Completed

VI. Community Building

In addition to rebuilding buildings and providing emergency assistance to individuals, CWS also supports Haitian efforts to build a more resilient society, and advocates with foreign entities for more just policies toward Haiti and Haitians. These initiatives seek to have national and international impact.

A) Advocacy

Partner: Christian Aid
Project Period: November 1, 2010-December 31, 2012
Budget: $50,000

CWS employs a Haiti Advocacy Officer, seconded from and co-funded by Christian Aid, who works in Washington DC on issues relating to Haiti and Haitians. This position advocates with foreign governments and international organizations for just policies toward Haiti and Haitians.

Achievements:

  • Participation in the Haiti Working Group, Haiti Advocacy Day, and meetings with major stakeholders in Haiti (USAID, IDB, EU)
  • Co-sponsored a conference on “Statelessness and the Right to Nationality in the Dominican Republic,” that advocated for justice for Haitian immigrants in the DR and Dominicans of Haitian descent
  • Advocating with special focus on issues of gender-based violence and good governance/transparency in Haiti
  • This work continues

B) Climate Change & The Environment

Partner: ACT Alliance
Project Period: January 1, 2012-December 31, 2012
Budget: $30,000

CWS will support a joint project developed by the Haiti ACT Alliance Forum to address climate change and the environment. The project will fund local initiatives to reduce the impact of climate change and improve the environment in Haiti. Outreach and training will also be done to strengthen the local communities’ ability to confront climate change and environmental issues. The total budget of the project will be over $500,000, with various ACT members contributing toward the budget.

CWS is now supporting this work. The project has held four regional conferences on CC/DRR, including one in the capital co-sponsored by the Haitian Ministry of the Environment.

C) Local Accountability

Partner: To Be Determined
Project Period: July 1, 2012-May 31, 2013
Budget: $40,000

While the amount of aid coming through government and non-government institutions in Haiti is enormous, accountability and transparency have not been strong. CWS will support one or more local organizations that are effectively addressing issues of transparency and accountability of both government and non-governmental organizations.

We are currently exploring opportunities to support this work, looking for new partner

D) Disaster Risk Reduction

Project Period: July 1, 2012-May 31, 2013
Partner: To Be Determined
Budget: $20,000

In addition to repairing institutions as a means of disaster risk reduction, CWS will provide training to partner agencies in disaster risk reduction to strengthen communities’ capacity to minimize the impact of future disasters.

Not yet implemented

E) Capacity Building

Partners: All
Project Period: January 1, 2011-December 31, 2012
Budget: $40,000

CWS supports initiatives to protect, support and build the capacity of local partners, who face great demands and need following the earthquake.

Achievements:

  • DC-based CWS staff provided the CWS-designed training on “Mainstreaming Protection” to over 35 individuals from 20 Haitian and Dominican organizations.
  • Collaborated with Christian Aid to hold an Advocacy Training for organizations in Haiti.

F) Protection

In collaboration with Christian Aid, we are funding three organizations in DR and Haiti to do small protection projects. The three organizations are:

++ Caminante (Boca Chica, DR) is providing holistic services to Haitian children living in the DR. Support includes medical, educational, and psychosocial services. Caminante is also working to strengthen the children’s rights network in DR.

++ ASR Network (Haiti) is drafting a protocol document that they will advocate for the Haitian government to make law-relating to protecting the rights of children and restavek children.

++ GARR (Haiti) is doing an assessment of a community living in a camp to determine their protection needs and establish a baseline for future services.

Additional information:

CWS staff in Haiti develop projects, manage programs, conduct monitoring, and ensure financial accountability and proper reporting. The budget for staff costs and operations from January 1, 2012 – June 30, 2013 is $238,200.

RECAP of BUDGET:
Phase II funding required: $2,171,229; funding to date: $1,757,728; funding still needed: $413,501

Any funds remaining at end of June 2013, either due to under-expenditure in any planned programs or revenue beyond appeal requirements will be applied to Haiti development work beyond June 2013.

How to help

Thank you for walking with CWS and Haiti in her time of need and making all this work possible. Please help ensure CWS is prepared and able to respond when disaster strikes, wherever it may be.

Contributions may be made online sent to your denomination or to Church World Service, P.O. Box 968, Elkhart, IN, 46515. Please designate: Haiti Earthquake, Appeal Number #6762.

Church World Service is a member of the ACT Alliance, a global coalition of churches and agencies engaged in development, humanitarian assistance and advocacy.