Habitat for Humanity  
Site Map |  Contact
 
 
US/Habitat for Humanity Int'l
Change Edition

banner image
 
Travel and Build
Take a Global Village volunteer vacation and help people in a different part of the world build Habitat houses.

Volunteer Longer-term
Habitat's International Volunteer Program offers opportunities to serve for an extended period with one of our offices around the world.



Habitat for Humanity Haiti

        Contact information
HFH Haiti
1, Rue Reimbold Bourdon
Petion-Ville HT 6140
Port-au-Prince
Haiti

Phone: +509 22453787
Fax: +509 22453787
E-mail: info@habitathaiti.org

        Web site
www.habitathaiti.org

 
        Habitat's Work in Haiti
New families served this year*: 136
Total homes constructed/rehabilitated: 1,167
House sponsorship cost: US$7,100

        Haiti News and Stories
Reaching out in hurricane devastated Haiti

Rebuilding hope in Haiti

Community build in Haiti


        Country profile
Habitat for Humanity Haiti -- Habitat for Humanity Int'l 1

Mission
Habitat for Humanity Haiti works in partnership with God and people from all walks of life, to develop communities with people of low income by building and renovating houses, so that each person has adequate housing in their community, living and growing in all that God proposes.

History

Habitat for Humanity has 26 years of experience serving families in Haiti. It has provided more than 2,000 families with housing solutions (1,794 of which are new homes) through a variety of initiatives including projects for new home construction, progressive building, and home improvements. It also builds capacity in construction skills, disaster mitigation and financial literacy, and works in coordination with community and government actors.

   
 

 

Hurricane-damaged homes in Gonaives

   


Devastation of the 2008 hurricane season

Between August 9 and September 7 of 2008, tropical storms and hurricanes Fay, Gustav, Hanna and Ike consecutively pummeled Haiti.

In Gonaives, Haiti’s second largest city with a population of 500,000, flood waters reached the ten foot mark. A total of 3,735 homes were destroyed or damaged in Gonaives alone. Compounding the situation, bridges and roads into the Gonaives area were washed out, and reliable land access has only recently been reestablished.

Vulnerability to disaster

Families living in inadequate housing are more vulnerable to disasters, which happen often, since Haiti sits right on the hurricane path in the Caribbean. A total of 15 severe tropical storms or hurricanes have hit Haiti in the last 14 years. Habitat for Humanity is helping to rebuild after the hurricanes of 2008, as well as mitigate future disasters, utilizing hurricane-resistant home designs.

Model projects

Habitat for Humanity Haiti supports several initiatives, in addition to traditional home construction.

Incremental improvements for homes damaged by tropical storms and hurricanes.

In Haiti, people build incrementally over a period of several years—often up to 10 or 20 years. Loans from Habitat can help families to improve the structure of their home and their quality of life, including essential repairs and improvements (roofs, walls, floors, water/sanitation and latrines). House completions are also made possible through small loans by allowing families to make the investment to finish construction.

New core homes

In Haiti, the core housing unit replicates the traditional Haitian practice of building incrementally, beginning with the basics and progressing with additions over time. This also allows Habitat to reach more families through a subsidized solution in the short-term, with the option of integrating them into the Habitat loan program in the future. The 20 square meter core housing unit consists of one or two rooms, and exceeds the Sphere standards of living space for five people (the average Haitian family size). Core homes also include a separate sanitation structure with a latrine and shower.

Building and Training Centers

Habitat is providing vocational training, facilitating jobs in the construction sector, and supporting construction-related small enterprises through Building and Training Centers (BTC) in Gonaives and Cap-Haitien. The project is supported by an USAID sub-grant for US$900,000 through CHF International and Habitat for Humanity International, and with additional support from the Saje Foundation.

Training in disaster preparedness and mitigation

Disaster mitigation and prevention training in coordination with local government (Civil Defense), community groups and other non-profit organizations such as World Vision, is a key element in reducing families’ vulnerability to disasters—potentially saving lives. Habitat has partnered with Civil Defense in Cabaret, Haiti to provide this training to families.

   
 

   


How can you help?

Your support is needed to help Haitians recover from disaster and have a secure home to shelter them from future storms. Every donation counts.

In Haiti, US$200,000 donation from your family, church, foundation or company would help to either provide 50 Haitian families who lost their homes with new core homes (US$4,000 each), or help an estimated 150 families whose homes were damaged with needed home repairs (average price per repair estimated at US$1,500).

A US$100,000 donation would provide 25 families with core home, or 50 families with home repairs.

A US$25,000 donation would provide 6 families with core homes, or 16 families with home repairs.

Donate any amount today
, or contact kpearson@habitat.org.




*Number of new families served includes families benefiting from new houses, rehabilitations, repairs, and technical, finance and other services in the year to June 30.