Providing rehousing in the recovery phase
A trademark in the work of Danish People’s Aid around the world is the provision of temporary and permanent rehousing for people in distress.
Our work
The primary objective of the transitional shelter strategy of Danish People’s Aid is to provide protection against the climatic conditions after catastrophes and to provide safety and physical protection through the construction of transitional shelters.
Thousands of families have been re-housed by Danish People’s Aid following e.g. natural disasters in urban and rural areas – most recent in Sri Lanka and Haiti.
The construction of shelters is a process rather than a final product. Mobile shelters offer the most practical and flexible solution during the period of rebuilding.
The shelters can be made permanent through upgrading. They may also be reused and sold, or the materials can be recycled.
Most shelters are constructed using local building materials, which contributes to the local economy.
The shelters are mainly used for internally displaced persons and ethnic groups, who have had to flee their homes or have had their houses damaged beyond repair because of natural disasters such as earthquakes, tsunamis or flooding.
This is how Danish People’s Aid builds shelters
Sri Lanka
Following the 2005 tsunami in Sri Lanka, Danish People’s Aid built 500 shelters in coastal areas funded by the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Haiti
In Haiti, Danish People’s Aid started building shelters a couple of months after the earthquake hit the capital Port-au-Prince in January 2010. The Danish design was recognised by the UN Shelter Cluster for being thought through, financial, sustainable and easy to erect.
The shelters are constructed based on a philosophy of self-help, but the many Haitian families currently building their own shelter; receive professional advice and practical guidance from a locally employed Haitians.
In conjunction, we ensure that the houses are constructed in a safe and sound manner. Therefore, we train teams consisting of three craftsmen to help with the completion.
The design developed by Danish People’s Aid can accommodate 4 persons (or up to 5 in certain cases) and their belongings. The house is easy to build and suitable for local communities. It has a lifespan of three-four years when kept in repair and is easily disassembled. The building materials can also be part of a new, permanent house.
|
|
 |
What is a shelter?
The shelters or houses provide shelter to persons who have been displaced from their homes, until a permanent solution to their housing problem has been found.
Having a shelter means lower risk of being driven away from your local area.
People who are homeless because of disasters or conflicts need housing while they rebuild their houses or find other permanent places to live. Emergency shelters and reconstruction must therefore be done simultaneously. Normally, the reconstruction after a disaster takes between two and five years. A shelter will stand for three to five years, whereas a tent maybe only stands for a year at the most.
Shelters are but one type of aid during a disaster. Other activities are the distribution of food, medical treatment and establishment of water and sanitation.
Transitional shelters are meant to pave the way for permanent housing. In the process city planning, sanitation, the ownership of land, human rights, the neighbouring population, local economy, security and cultural factors must be taken into account.
