After tsunami, UMCOR
builds houses, livelihoods in Indonesia
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A UMNS photo by Michelle R. Scott, UMCOR
Men mix concrete for the houses UMCOR is building in Bireuen Province, Indonesia.
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| Men
mix concrete for the houses that the United Methodist Committee on
Relief is building in Bireuen Province, Indonesia. UMCOR is helping
rebuild homes in four villages in the Indonesian province following the
devastating tsunami that hit the island country on Dec. 26, 2004. The
agency is also helping people through its livelihoods program, which
trains people in small-business startup and management and supplies them
with needed equipment. A UMNS photo by Michelle R. Scott, UMCOR. Photo
#06622. Accompanies UMNS story #326. 6/5/06 |
June 5, 2006
By Michelle R. Scott*
BIREUEN, Indonesia (UMNS) — Zulkifi believes the houses built by the United
Methodist Committee on Relief are the best.
Sitting in the living room of his new UMCOR-built house, he likes to compare it
to the other homes being built in the area. He then apologizes that his house is
empty. It is, save for a straw mat on the floor and the fishing net he is
working on to earn some income for his family.
“The house is empty because I have no job,” he says.
UMCOR is not only helping Zulkifi and people in four other villages in the
Bireuen district with housing, it is also helping them restore their
livelihoods, as the region continues to recover from the Dec. 26, 2004, tsunami.
Zulkifi is one of 292 people who participated in recent training sessions. The
livelihoods program includes a 16-hour course in small-business startup and
management, followed by an application process through which Zulkifi and his
neighbors can request the supplies and equipment they need to start a new
business or restart the one they lost in the tsunami.
Providing support
A local government official, Amir Adli, lists jobs as one of the top needs for
people in his community. He explains that people want to work, but they lack the
support. “Now they have a good house,” he says. “But they lost everything.”
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A UMNS photo by Michelle R. Scott, UMCOR
Many women plan to open sewing businesses as a source of income for their families.
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| Following
the devastating tsunami that hit Indonesia Dec. 26, 2004, many women
plan to open sewing businesses as a source of income for their families.
The United Methodist Committee on Relief is helping them through its
livelihoods program, which trains people in small-business startup and
management and supplies them with needed equipment. A UMNS photo by
Michelle R. Scott, UMCOR. Photo #06623. Accompanies UMNS story #326.
6/5/06 |
At a community gathering near Pineung Siribee Village, dozens of people living
in temporary barracks-style housing talk about their future. This village is one
of the five where UMCOR is assisting tsunami survivors.
Many of the people gathered here have already attended the weeklong livelihood
training session and have either submitted or are planning to submit an
application to receive assistance in starting up a small business.
Common interests are fishing, setting up fishponds, operating small stores,
chicken farming, supplying well parts, sewing and making cakes. Most are picking
up where they left off before the tsunami. Some, mostly fishermen, are choosing
to change their occupation.
Giving and receiving
Syarifa is one of the more than 500 people who submitted an application and a
business plan for a cake-making business to UMCOR. In the plan, she says she
needs an oven, a way to purchase ingredients, and something to transport the
cakes she makes to nearby shops where people buy snacks.
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A UMNS photo by Michelle R. Scott, UMCOR
For one family, this new UMCOR home replaces the battered house in the background.
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| For
one family, this new home replaces the battered house in the
background. The house was built by the United Methodist Committee on
Relief, which is helping rebuild homes in four villages in Bireuen
Province, Indonesia, following the devastating tsunami that hit the
island country Dec. 26, 2004. The agency is also helping people through
its livelihoods program, which trains people in small-business startup
and management and supplies them with needed equipment. A UMNS photo by
Michelle R. Scott, UMCOR. Photo #06624. Accompanies UMNS story #326.
6/5/06 |
This is what she did before the tsunami took her home, her husband and her only
means of income. “Everything was gone except me,” she says.
In her application, Syarifa explains how she will give back to the community.
Those who receive livelihood assistance will be obliged to return to the
community 25 percent of the value of what they received from UMCOR.
The return payment is not expected to be in cash. Instead, beneficiaries can
provide free or reduced cost services to their community, hire additional
employees or use other creative ways to give back some of what they received.
UMCOR plans to provide at least half of the applicants with material assistance
in the form of equipment and other support that will allow them to start new or
restart businesses lost in the tsunami.
More information on the work in Indonesia and other parts of the world can be
found at http://new.gbgm-umc.org/umcor,
the UMCOR Web site.
*Scott, an UMCOR staff member in New York, visited Indonesia this spring.
News media contact: Linda Bloom, New York, (646) 369-3759 or
newsdesk@umcom.org.
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Resources
UMCOR
NPR: Tsunami
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