Rebuilding lives and providing hope in Haiti

7 May 2010 - Sitting on the ruins of her home, Stephanie stares into the empty space while keeping an eye on her 12 year old sister Locita. The devastating earthquake has left her traumatised. “My dad was killed in the quake. He managed to escape from the rubble but passed away two weeks later due to internal bleeding…. nobody noticed he’d been injured. My mum is still in hospital; she is getting better but it will take another few weeks before she’ll be able to leave the clinic.” 

Like hundreds of thousands of survivors, Stephanie and her family lost everything in the devastating quake which hit the country on 12th January 2010. The impact of the disaster has thrown Stephanie’s life into turmoil. While her older sister Christina is caring for her mother in the hospital, Stephanie is juggling the responsibility of looking after her mentally disabled sister Locita and having to support the rest of her family. With their former home in ruins, they are staying in their neighbours’ makeshift tent for the time being; but it has started to leak and the onset of the rainy season has made their already dire living conditions even worse. 

However, thanks to an innovative scheme implemented by Action Against Hunger, there is hope. Every morning, Stephanie is participating in Action Against Hunger’s cash-for-work scheme, which aims to help families meet their basic needs, whilst involving them in the process of reconstruction. “We are clearing out all the rubbish and debris from the river bed to prevent the gully from flooding,” explains Stephanie, whose house was located right next to the gully.  

After enduring excessive hardship, not only do these activities offer a glimmer of hope, but they also give Stephanie an opportunity to earn money to support her family and help her look to the future. “I hope to go back to school soon,” she says. “Or otherwise, I’d like to help my mum with her business once she is better again. We used to have a food stall but everything has been destroyed. Hopefully the money I’m earning will help us re-launch the business.” 

Two weeks later, Stephanie and her sister Christina switch roles, enabling Stephanie to spend some time with her mother at the hospital, while Christina is able to continue earning an income for the family.

It will take a long time before families like Stephanie’s will be able to return to any kind of normality. However, the innovative cash-for-work scheme makes a difference to thousands of survivors, giving hope for the future, while involving communities in the process of rebuilding both their country and their lives.