Eighteen months after the 12 January 2010 earthquake, 634,000 people still live in displacement camps or sites, which are budding all around Port-au-Prince. Among them, in the Dortoir Universitaire camps, families live in critical conditions, and under the constant threat of eviction. ACTED was able to provide the 404 most vulnerable families with a transitional shelter in neighboring Croix des Bouquets.

“Banm mato a epi kote klou yo?” (“Pass me the hammer, and where are the nails?”) shouts Sergo, one of the carpenters who defy gravity by working on the construction of the roof for a shelter. In oppressive sunshine, this beneficiary of the Cash for Work activity is proud of having contributed to the construction of the 404 shelters that will improve the living conditions of over 2,000 people. Amid the noise of clanging hammers and shouting, we can hear ACTED conductor Pierre, who leads a workforce of over 350 people.

Four weeks later, results can already be seen: the Rony Collin strip of land, which spreads over 31,000 square meters, now looks like a small suburban neighborhood, already animated with shops and the daily life of its inhabitants. With support from the American Red Cross, ACTED was able to build 404 transitional shelters for the most vulnerable families of the Dortoir Universitaire camp, in the Tabarre community.

The camp suffers from frequent flooding, and threats of eviction menace a population that found refuge in such precariousness. Coralie, a little girl who lost both legs in the earthquake, tells: “I didn’t like the place we were living before. It was dirty, the rain gave us a hard time, and it was terribly hot in the tent. Now, I will be able to make my drawings in peace.” Wilanda, a young mother of two, approves: “Every time I wanted to go to sleep, I had a feeling someone would knock on the door at any time to throw us out. Even if this house is transitional, I will be able to sleep quietly.”

“Finally out of this ordeal”

After investigation led with the population of Dortoir Universitaire , ACTED teams targeted families that responded to identified vulnerability criteria. These were mainly families with very little income (less than 12 USD per month) with no other shelter than the tent they were living in since the earthquake. Other particularly vulnerable families (women-led households, families with members suffering from handicap and elderly people) were also given priority. This is how Clarens, a 12 January orphan, could see light at the end of the tunnel: “When I heard I would be among the people who were leaving, I couldn’t believe my luck. We don’t live here, we merely exist. Knowing that my sister and I will benefit from a proper roof over our heads fills me with joy and happiness... I’m finally getting out of this ordeal!”

According to Keny, program technical assistant, finding constructible land is almost mission impossible. “Finding constructible land can only happen two ways. In the first, we ask local authorities, whose decision-making moves in mysterious ways, which delays work considerably. The second path consists in convincing a landowner to lend us a plot of land for two to three years, which would be a miracle,” Kendy confesses.

Starting over

Working in close collaboration with the councils of Tabarre and Croix des Bouquets and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), ACTED finally obtained the Rony Collin field. It was granted by the Aristide Foundation to Tabarre council to relocate displaced persons over a three-year period and therefore free the Dortoir Universitaire land. ACTED, IOM, Chemonics and the Mentor Initiative joined forces to provide the vulnerable beneficiary families with quick relief and support in their relocation. Families were only a few days before under the threat of eviction, flooding and disease.

Matthieu, the happy father of a baby, had lost his job after the earthquake. “I didn’t know how I would get out of this camp. I can’t afford to pay rent in such an expensive market. We are so happy to have the chance to start our lives over, in a real shelter.”