STRENGTHENING THE GETSEMANÍ COMMUNITY PROJECT
- Description Habitat El Salvador is launching a three-year holistic project with the Getsemaní community. In addition to providing 30 housing solutions per year, this project includes the development and implementation of sustainable programs in community leadership, values education, community health, cultural exchange and microentrepreneurship. This project is a response to the poverty and the large housing deficit in the department of Ahuachapán as well as a result of Habitat El Salvador expanding its strategies to serve families through more holistic, participatory, community-focused projects.
- Methodology From the beginning of the project, Habitat El Salvador is working directly with the community’s ADESCO board of directors, as the participation of the community leaders in this process is key to ensuring the sustainability of the results and is also an additional way to train them in project management.
Habitat El Salvador has hired a full-time project manager with experience in community development to design and implement the project. Her first responsibility is to create a baseline of data in the community—in coordination with the ADESCO board of directors—in order to determine and measure the precise needs, as related to each project component.
The next step is for the project manager to collaborate with the ADESCO board of directors to design and subsequently implement each program, based on the baseline data. Together they will identify and invite other local organizations to contribute to the project. Furthermore, Habitat El Salvador will promote the participation of national and international volunteers in all components.
Project Components
- Community Leadership The goal of this component is to strengthen the project management capacity of the community’s board of directors and potential new community leaders. During the first year, community leaders will attend workshops on the role of the board of directors and will conduct a self-evaluation of the board. They will then participate in a series of classes on the different phases of project management and, as a capstone experience, will work together to plan and carry out a new community project.
- Values Education The goal of this component is to promote values, through a Christian education program for youth, in order to improve family and community relationships. Under the leadership of the nearby Presbyterian Church of Ahuachapán and other local churches, 100 community youth will have the opportunity to participate in a year-long values education and Bible study program, including a summer camp.
- Community Health The goal of this component is to improve the conditions of reproductive health, nutrition and basic sanitation for 138 families in the community and surrounding communities. The focus is on preventative rather than curative health measures, given that this method is safer and healthier for the families in the long-term as well as more cost-effective. During the first year of the project, youth leaders will participate in a year-long course on reproductive health. Families will have the opportunity to participate in workshops on nutrition, take classes on healthy food preparation and even organize a gastronomical festival. With regard to basic sanitation, the project manager will work with families to ensure proper reuse of grey water and also vector control. Furthermore, local and international medical teams will be invited to the community to see patients.
- Cultural Exchange The goal of this component is to promote cultural exchange among the community, the local church, international churches and Habitat El Salvador . More than a community development project, this project seeks to facilitate the development of fraternal relationships among all partners. To that end, international partners will be encouraged to visit the community on an annual basis to participate in spiritual retreats, social events and community service activities alongside community members and local church partners.
- Microentrepreneurship The goal of this component is to promote microentrepreneurial initiatives, in order to help families improve their income. In collaboration with other institutions with experience in income-generating projects, the project manager will work with the ADESCO board of directors to establish a community solidarity fund that can help finance community members’ microentrepreneurial initiatives. This program will be designed such that it will create a domino effect of added value to the community. Community leaders will be highly trained in fund administration.
- Housing Solutions The goal of this component is to provide a total of 90 housing solutions—30 per year for three years—for families in Getsemaní and surrounding communities who currently live in substandard housing. The standard house design measures 34 square meters and includes two bedrooms, a living/kitchen/dining room and a bathroom. All houses will be wired for electricity and will be built according to the structural safety codes of El Salvador.
Considering the level of poverty of the partner families, the house loans will be subsidized by Habitat El Salvador between 40% and 60%, the percentage of which will be determined by a socioeconomic study of each family. As with all Habitat projects, the homeowners are required to contribute sweat equity.Additional Resources:
2011 Lent Build Project {Strengthening Getsemaní}
Habitat For Humanity
Steele Creek Presbyterian Church
Peace,
Dennis R. Grills
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