Haven is a non governmental, non political, non religious organisation working solely in Haiti to facilitate the provision of adequate shelter, water and sanitation & training solutions for vulnerable Haitians. Haven works in partnership with project participants and the Government of Haiti and includes community development at the core of all its work.
What Haven does
Haven's mission is to build strong sustainable communities by facilitating the construction of shelter and the provision of water and sanitation solutions, and providing training and community development to ensure sustainable livelihoods. These programmes run throughout the year.
By training, up-skilling and employing local Haitian people throughout the year, Haven is creating jobs, encouraging local trade and promoting industry. Homes, community buildings and house upgrades are key elements of Haven's projects.
Since the earthquake hit Haiti's capital city, Port au Prince, on January 12th, 2010, Haven has been working in affected areas providing emergency relief to those most in need.
To date Haven has:
- Built, repaired and upgraded over 2,000 homes in Haiti.
- Over 1,300 latrines, 308 showers and 20 community shelters have been provided in IDP camps.
- More than 3,000 local people have been trained in hygiene promotion, conflict resolution and vocational training to empower communities to pursue their livelihoods.
- Haven has employed 600 local people in their projects.
- More than 10,000 children in schools have been provided with clean water, sanitation facilities and hygiene training.
- Over 1,000 volunteers have travelled with Haven to Haiti to assist on house building projects since 2009.
UPCOMING TRIP TO HAITI- May 2013
After a review of the original ‘Build It Week’ model, Haven is delighted to announce that we will commence a new Volunteer Programme that will see Haven return to the island of Ile a Vache at the end of May 2013.
The new Volunteer Programme will move away from the typical house building structure and see Haven’s volunteers work side by side with local communities partaking in programmes designed around Haven’s three core development areas; Water & Sanitation, Shelter and Training & Education. Interaction with the community will be one of the key components of the new Volunteer Programme. Volunteers will partake in a broad range of activities suited to multiple skill sets. We will also look at encouraging partnerships between Irish Communities and businesses and those in Haiti.
The 2010 earthquake in Haiti affected more than two million people. Today, thousands of Haitians continue to live in dire conditions, with nearly half a million people still living in camps throughout the region. These families need your help. Your sacrifice of time and comfort, your hard work and your commitment to not only cover your own costs but to raise funds for future work in Haiti are what will truly make this Build it Week with Haven a life-changing experience.
