Non-governmental organisation Habitat for Humanity (HFH) Vietnam has kicked off a project to build 25 houses for disadvantaged families in flood-prone areas in the Mekong Delta province of Tien Giang. 

 A man carrying a child in a flood in November 2011 which caused 8 deaths in Tien Giang province

According to Tuoitrenews, the ‘Mekong Big Builds’ project is hosted by HFH Vietnam and its local government partners with the participation of 200 volunteers from New Zealand, the US, Japan, China, the UK, Australia, Singapore and Vietnam. They will build up to 25 houses during the week of August 4-10. 

The houses are estimated to cost around VND50 million each. Habitat for Humanity Vietnam will finance VND40 million of the cost of each home while the local government partners and future homeowners together will contribute the remaining VND10 million. 

The future homeowners will be building their own homes side-by-side the international volunteers who will live and work for a week amidst the quaint and sparsely populated Mekong Delta farming community. 

The Mekong Big Builds is part of the regional Habitat for Humanity initiative and will take place again in Cambodia in November this year. 

Speaking at a ceremony to kick-start the programme held in Tien Giang on July 1, Vo Thi Tuyet, Secretary General of Tien Giang Union of Friendship Organisations said that pre-building preparations and budgets are completed and the families and volunteers are ready to start building. 

Habitat for Humanity Vietnam began operations in 2001 in the central city of Da Nang to provide low cost housing, water and sanitation solutions to marginalised households. HFH Vietnam has implemented projects in more than ten provinces across the country to date.