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Builders Without Borders in the Maldives
It is almost 3 years since the 2004 tsunami and coastal communities are still trying to recover. The Republic of the Maldives, a necklace of 1,200 small coral islands located in the centre of the Indian Ocean, had more infrastructure damage per capita than any other country. Seventy-six of the 200 inhabited islands were affected by the waves that washed up to 3 metres high over the land. Two islands were completely abandoned.
Builders Without Borders recruited two delegates to work on the Maldives recovery. Jonn Braman has recently returned to his home in Vancouver after spending a year helping communities clean up after the tsunami. As part of a joint effort between the Australian Red Cross and the Canadian Red Cross the team Jonn worked on removed 36,000 tonnes of waste from 74 islands, built 79 waste management centres and trained 77 communities in proper waste management.
Tsunami waves washed garbage all over the islands. As well the damage from the force of the tsunami created more waste as buildings and boundary walls collapsed under the weight of the water. Emergency response appropriately focused on food, water, health and shelter to reduce human suffering. Recovery, including rebuilding homes and infrastructure, and cleaning up the mess, followed with various agencies taking responsibility for different tasks. Cleaning up the garbage, while not the most desirable job, was critical to reducing health impact from disease transmission and safety hazards. It also played an important role in improving community well-being as odours and unsightly wastes were removed from the islands.
The waste collection was done by local contractors aided by community volunteers. Heavy equipment was barged to the islands to collect most of the waste (though some did not have harbour access and had to be cleaned by hand). Crews picked the beaches and forested areas by hand and all the waste was removed by landing craft to the country’s landfill. Between 15 and 20 people on each island were trained in proper waste management and helped to develop an island waste management plan. At the same time a concrete waste management centre was constructed to encourage recycling and safe disposal.
The $9.4 million project took two years to plan and execute, finishing in early July 2007. Over 100,000 people, about one third of the country’s population, benefit directly from the project. As well the national government has been galvanized into developing a country-wide waste management program. This is proud legacy for Canadians, exactly half a world away, made possible by Builders Without Borders working with Red Cross societies.
Stay tuned for news about the “other” Builders Without Borders recruit who continues to work on infrastructure rebuilding in the Maldives.
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