Project Sheet
Support to the Swiss Red Cross for reconstruction in Nepal
Country : Nepal
Date :
2015
Continent(s) :
Asia
Theme(s) : Habitat
On April 25th and May 12th, 2015, two earthquakes of magnitude 7,8 and 7,3 hit Nepal making 9000 victims and destroying massively infrastructures and houses.
Immediately after the first earthquake, the Swiss Red Cross (CRS) planned the implementation of a project to support local initiatives of emergency reconstruction.
After an initial contact with CRAterre, a first assessment mission was led by Julien Hosta aiming to identify local best practices in the regions of Dolakha and Ramechaap. This fast deployment, just a few days after the first earthquake, allowed to observe the immediate strategies used by the population to protect themselves from instantaneous risks. It allowed also an analysis of the damaged buildings before being dismantled by the population (in order to recycle the building materials for temporary shelters) and a better understanding of the behavior of vernacular architectures affected by an earthquake. This initial mission was also the opportunity of getting in close contact with the competent Nepalese authorities on re-construction after a natural disaster (NSET in particular) and participate in the strategic debates with other organizations involved in the programs of post-earthquake reconstruction, in particular within the Shelter Cluster. CRS organized a training strategy for the active craftsmen in the local communities based on this contextual analysis realized by CRAterre.
CRS wished a second assessment mission in the region of Sindhuli. This mission, led by Miguel Ferreira Mendes in June / July, 2015, underlined the diversity of the local building cultures in the various regions of Nepal. It also defined the contents of training strategy to be implemented by CRS and its programmation. Furthermore, it gave the opportunity to continue the participation in the strategic debates with other organizations involved in the programs of post-earthquake reconstruction, particularly by sharing the main lines of the contents of the developed training programs. This mission was led together with Olivier Le Gall, a DSA Earth student (post master training), recruited by CRS to be a part of the emergency team between June and July, 2015.
Finally, Miguel Ferreira Mendes coordinated the trainers' training - organized in Dolakha by the Nepalese Red Cross and CRS - during a third field mission in August / September, 2015. A training kit was developed focused on the situation in Dolakha, Ramechhap and Sindhuli. This kit was put at the disposal of CRS. The mission allowed to establish contacts with more organizations and to strengthen their collaboration. A general project presentation was organized for the PNS (National Partner Societies) of the Nepalese Red Cross. It focused on the approach of “local building culture” developed by CRAterre with its field partners. The implementation of the training strategy is still ongoing and attentively followed by CRAterre.
Next to this partnership with CRS, Philippe Garnier went to Nepal in September 2015, charged with a double mission which consisted in i) the estimation of the capacities of the CCODER organization to carry a reconstruction project in the region of Gorkha, at the request of Caritas Luxembourg, and ii) meeting with various organizations involved in reconstruction projects in order to share on strategies and to discuss potential collaboration in the development of post-earthquake projects based on local building cultures. This mission confirmed the relevance of the use of local building cultures and the existing knowledge on seismic risks, but also the need to use natural and human resources in the best possible way.
CRAterre remains particularly active in the follow-up of this dramatic crisis.
Immediately after the first earthquake, the Swiss Red Cross (CRS) planned the implementation of a project to support local initiatives of emergency reconstruction.
After an initial contact with CRAterre, a first assessment mission was led by Julien Hosta aiming to identify local best practices in the regions of Dolakha and Ramechaap. This fast deployment, just a few days after the first earthquake, allowed to observe the immediate strategies used by the population to protect themselves from instantaneous risks. It allowed also an analysis of the damaged buildings before being dismantled by the population (in order to recycle the building materials for temporary shelters) and a better understanding of the behavior of vernacular architectures affected by an earthquake. This initial mission was also the opportunity of getting in close contact with the competent Nepalese authorities on re-construction after a natural disaster (NSET in particular) and participate in the strategic debates with other organizations involved in the programs of post-earthquake reconstruction, in particular within the Shelter Cluster. CRS organized a training strategy for the active craftsmen in the local communities based on this contextual analysis realized by CRAterre.
CRS wished a second assessment mission in the region of Sindhuli. This mission, led by Miguel Ferreira Mendes in June / July, 2015, underlined the diversity of the local building cultures in the various regions of Nepal. It also defined the contents of training strategy to be implemented by CRS and its programmation. Furthermore, it gave the opportunity to continue the participation in the strategic debates with other organizations involved in the programs of post-earthquake reconstruction, particularly by sharing the main lines of the contents of the developed training programs. This mission was led together with Olivier Le Gall, a DSA Earth student (post master training), recruited by CRS to be a part of the emergency team between June and July, 2015.
Finally, Miguel Ferreira Mendes coordinated the trainers' training - organized in Dolakha by the Nepalese Red Cross and CRS - during a third field mission in August / September, 2015. A training kit was developed focused on the situation in Dolakha, Ramechhap and Sindhuli. This kit was put at the disposal of CRS. The mission allowed to establish contacts with more organizations and to strengthen their collaboration. A general project presentation was organized for the PNS (National Partner Societies) of the Nepalese Red Cross. It focused on the approach of “local building culture” developed by CRAterre with its field partners. The implementation of the training strategy is still ongoing and attentively followed by CRAterre.
Next to this partnership with CRS, Philippe Garnier went to Nepal in September 2015, charged with a double mission which consisted in i) the estimation of the capacities of the CCODER organization to carry a reconstruction project in the region of Gorkha, at the request of Caritas Luxembourg, and ii) meeting with various organizations involved in reconstruction projects in order to share on strategies and to discuss potential collaboration in the development of post-earthquake projects based on local building cultures. This mission confirmed the relevance of the use of local building cultures and the existing knowledge on seismic risks, but also the need to use natural and human resources in the best possible way.
CRAterre remains particularly active in the follow-up of this dramatic crisis.
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