CONTENTS | ANB-BIA HOMEPAGE | WEEKLY NEWS
by Edwards H. Gama, Malawi, January 2000
THEME = SOCIAL CONDIT.
There's an organisation which has for many years been trying to remind the well-off, that not everybody is as fortunate as they are, and which is vigorously pursuing its objective to make available, simple, decent homes, in its long-term low-cost housing projects, with the beneficiaries providing the unskilled labour and materials for making bricks. The organisation, Habitat for Humanity (HFH), an international organisation, is geared to providing better homes for many in this new millennium. On the occasion of World Habitat Day (4 October each year), it has emphasised its mission, with new plans for activities to bolster its already successful aspirations.
HFH is a Christian, ecumenical, non-profit-making organisation, seeking to eliminate housing poverty from the face of the earth, and to make decent shelter a matter of conscience and action. It has its headquarters in the United States of America and operates affiliate organisations in almost 70 countries worldwide. Founded by Millard and Linda Fuller 25 years ago in what was then Zaire, now Congo RDC, it commemorated its 25th anniversary in Africa at the close of the last millennium, with a number of activities carrying the mottos "All Women build" and "Blitz Build" - the latter involving the building of several low-cost houses in a short period of time. HFH started serving families in need, in 1986, at the invitation of concerned Malawians. Since then, its projects have spread throughout the country's three regions, spearheaded by 12 affiliate offices. It has built over 4,500 houses, housing more than 26,400 low-income family members. Indeed, its largest programme is in Africa, with Malawi the chief beneficiary.
Expertise and materials are provided by Habitat for Humanity - Malawi (HFHM) on a repayment basis, while the beneficiaries mould their own bricks and provide the labour. After the completion of the house, the new home owner repays the value of the house - US $650 in low monthly instalments. The "loan" is repayable over a period of ten years with no interest added. Offices at project sites, have small factories for making roof tiles, carpentry shops, and fast-growing trees have been planted, providing the necessary timber used in roofing. This considerably reduces the cost of the house.
Beneficiaries are mostly people living in unsafe, unhealthy housing. They are people who normally would be unable to get hold of funds to build themselves a decent house, but who have the resources to pay back a modest, no-profit loan. Low-income families apply to HFHM for assistance, upon which a family selection committee reviews the applications and makes home visits to asses the housing needs of the applicants, their ability to repay the loan and their willingness to participate in the self-help programme. HFH is not a give-away programme, and emphasises the participation of home-owners in the building project.
At the end of last year, HFH launched the "Blitz Build" project. "Blitz" being a German word, meaning "quick as lightening". A group of houses are erected within a period of four to five days. For HFH to build a single house it takes three to four weeks, but the "Blitz Build" saw five habitable houses constructed within a short period. Funded by individual donors from the Netherlands, and local donors, the project that started last October, constructed such homes for the underprivileged people living in areas surrounding Blantyre, Lilongwe and Mzuzu.
"I was told I would have a house in a few days. I found this hard to believe, but there we are, I'm in my new home and I no longer have to suffer the humiliation of living in a shabby home," enthuses Aema Zapita, a widow with six children in the Mzuzu Project. The actual building was done by volunteers from schools and colleges, churches, as well as Habitat Home owners.
Statistics from HFHM indicate that four out of five families in Malawi live in sub-standard houses and have an average monthly income of less than Malawi Kwacha 1,500, which makes it extremely difficult to acquire reasonable homes. HFHM the effects of bad housing as follows: "Poor health is just one outcome of poor housing. But every Malawian has the right to a simple, decent and affordable house for their families. Habitat for Humanity intends to eliminate this problem from the roots".
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