September 14, 2010

Haiti Update: REACH Nears Final Award Stage of First Local Job Training Grant

ACDI/VOCA Community Helps Effort to Build Haiti Back Better Following Jan. 12th Earthquake

ACDI/VOCA’s team in Haiti is close to finalizing an agreement with the first grantee of the Rural Economy Acceleration in Haiti (REACH) project. The grant-making initiative serves as part of ACDI/VOCA’s efforts to bring much-needed attention and technical assistance to Haiti’s Southeast Department, which was hit hard in the devastating Jan. 12th earthquake.

The first potential REACH grant recipient is a local Haitian educational association named APTECH (Ateliers Pilotes de Technologie), which provides training and skills building for technicians and artisans and promotes stable and productive job creation in Southeast Haiti. APTECH is recognized by the Ministry of Education and has received funds in the past from Canadian Aid Agency and Plan International. If approved, APTECH will receive $41,000—enough to cover the expenses of classes and materials to train 40 students over six months in earthquake- and hurricane-resistant construction skills.

“We’re thankful to the generous ACDI/VOCA community for making our fundraising for REACH a resounding success,” says Chief of Party Emmet Murphy. “We’re excited that we’re close to awarding the first funds and getting the ball rolling to help Haitians get needed job skills.”

Project to Help Revitalize Haiti’s Rural Economy

The $100,000 fundraising effort for REACH—the largest in ACDI/VOCA’s history—is designed to award funding to local Haitian nongovernmental organizations in the Jacmel region to create jobs and aid job training. Technical assistance from ACDI/VOCA volunteers will provide some of the training support. An ACDI/VOCA volunteer has been identified to begin the training in early October.

Jacmel is located in the Haiti’s Southeast Department and was hit hard by the January 2010 earthquake. REACH is designed to build off of ACDI/VOCA’s current work in the Southeast Department and aid in the long-term goal of revitalizing Haiti’s rural economy.

APTECH had been on track to coalesce into a formal cooperative but was impeded by a number of challenges following the Jan. 12 earthquake. The expected grant award from REACH will help revitalize the cooperative movement in Southeast Haiti by supporting job training for construction workers who later will become members of the APTECH co-op.

ACDI/VOCA Staff Engage Local Haitian Officials

ACDI/VOCA staff has consulted with its local partners to ensure buy-in for the REACH awards. The earthquake- and hurricane-resistant construction technique training is endorsed by the Southeast Regional Office of the Ministry of Public Works, Transportation and Communication.

The process of identifying future grant recipients continues. ACDI/VOCA Deputy Chief of Party Mathieu Lucius is working with local mayors to identify needs they have for creating employment opportunities.

Potential needs are in construction/carpentry, manufacturing, artisan business development, and water and sanitation. More updates will follow.

Learn more www.acdivoca.org/haitirecovery.