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MANILA, Philippines?Aid agencies from Switzerland and Austria are helping repair more than 1,000 homes destroyed last year by typhoons Ondoy (international name: Ketsana) and Pepeng (Parma) and helping some 5,000 families affected by the typhoons get back on their feet.
In a news release, the Citizens? Disaster Response Center (CDRC) and the Cordillera Disaster Response and Development Services (CDRDS) launched the repair program entitled ?Disaster Relief for Ketsana and Parma Affected Families? in Botoc, Benguet on March 22.
Funded by Caritas Switzerland, Caritas Austria, and the Austrian Development Agency, and implemented by CDRC and five of its regional centers, which includes CDRDS, the project aims to alleviate the suffering of the 5,000 typhoons-affected families by giving them shelter/construction materials and non-food items (plastic sheets, blankets, sleeping mats, cooking and eating utensils), as well as psychosocial services.
Five regions, including Regions 1, 2, 3, 5, and Cordillera Region, which incurred the most damage with 309 dead and P1.4 billion worth of damages, will benefit from the project.
Among the beneficiaries would be the residents of sitio (sub-village) Labey and neighboring villages, which were isolated for almost two months due to landslides. Although no deaths or serious injuries were reported, agricultural lands and infrastructure were destroyed and 57 families were devastated in these areas, CDRC said.
Among the 50 people who attended the launch were Ursina Mueller, representative of Caritas Switzerland, CDRC executive director Lourdes Louella Escandor, and CDRDS executive director Jimmy Khayog.
?It is a good thing that people started to reorganize themselves after disasters. The repair of homes will not be possible without the spirit of bayanihan (helping each other) in the community, and without the assistance of Caritas,? Escandor said.
