un-habitat january 2008 newsletter

8/14/2019 UN-HABITAT January 2008 Newsletter

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UNITED NATIONS HUMAN SETTLEMENTS PROGRAMME

The main focus of the

UN-HABITAT rural

housing reconstruction

project at this time is to

increase the amount of

earthquake safe houses

being rebuilt in the affectedareas. The speedy pace

of housing reconstruction

has been astounding

so far in both AJK and

NWFP. However, some

beneciaries have rebuilt

their homes using unsafe

construction techniques.

These homes can become

Rural Housing Reconstruction

In January the UN-HABITAT Technical Department introduced several additional

clarications to the compliance catalogue which updated the previous versions of

the remedial measures. These additional measures were approved by NESPAK and

ERRA in stages throughout the month. The standards were revised to make remedial

measures cost effective and practical for beneciaries rebuilding.

Additional Clarications for Compliance

Issue No. 1/ 2008

January 31st,

2008

A monthly

newsletter

published by

the United

Nations Human

Settlements

Programme

Department

of Public

Information

covering all

UN-HABITAT

news in Pakistan.

-Additional

Clarications for

Compliance:

Page 1

-Remedial Dhajji

Testing:

Page 2

-Non-Compliance

Referral System:

Pages 2

-Billboards:

Page 3

-HRC Haveli

Update:

Pages 3-Management

Training:

Page 4

-Activist

Workshop:

Pages 4

-Landless

Documentary:

Page 3

-Radio Program:Page 3

-NWFP Support

Team:

Page 5

UN-HABITAT Pakistan

earthquake resistant by applying a few inexpensive remedial measures to them.

UN-HABITAT and ERRA have introduced several remedial measures for homeowners

and are providing trainings and workshops at each Housing Reconstruction Center

to teach how to apply them. Beneciaries are learning affordable measures

which they can apply to their homes to make them safer for themselves and

their families. Furthermore, upon the correct application of remedial measures

they will once again become eligible to receive the ERRA nancial assistance.

Morale High During Harsh WinterHousing reconstruction has continued

during the winter season and even though

the earthquake affectees have suffered the

worst winter season since the earthquake

the overall consensus is that their morale

is high. Parts of Pakistan have recorded

their lowest temperatures in more than 70

years and temperatures have fallen as low

as minus 14 degrees in the Northern areas.

Despite the harsh winter the rapid pace

of reconstruction has ensured that people

are living in safer

homes, staying

warm in the winter

and are in much

better situations

then they were

following the earthquake.

NewsletterJanuary 2008 Edition


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Remedial measures for Dhajji

construction were introduced

recently by ERRA with

support from NESPAK andUN-HABITAT engineers

and carpenters. To test the

recommended solutions, to

check their practicality, cost and

material requirements, the UN-

HABITAT Bagh team carried

out work on a house in Sahlian

village, Dheray UC in January.

Sahlian is at a high altitude,

where 90% of the houses are

constructed of Dhajji from the

salvaged materials remaining

after Kacha houses collapsed.

One of the advantages of timber

frame construction is that it is

easy to improve its safety, by

xing additional timber pieces to

strengthen or stiffen the building

where required. These measuresare fast, cheap and effective.

We expect a rapid uptake of

Dhajji remedial measures and

therefore most Dhajji houses to

reach compliance. The average

cost of remedial works on a

Dhajji House is anticipated to

be less than 10,000 PKR. The

work carried out in Bagh will

be used to illustrate training and

information materials, as well as

direct training for our team.

Remedial Dhajji Testing

ERRA has requested supportfrom UN-HABITAT to carry out

technical inspection of the non-

compliant houses in rural housing.

UN-HABITAT engineers will

move with the Assistance and

Inspection (AI) teams as joint

inspection teams and will visit

only those houses which are

declared as non-compliant. Joint

inspection teams will not visithouses which have been already

passed. The Non-ComplianceReferral System was introduced

by ERRA at the Muzaffarabad

Housing Reconstruction Center

on November 12th, 2008.

UN-HABITAT claried their

role in the Non-Compliance

Referral System on January

24th, 2008 in a meeting held in

Muzaffarabad. Joint inspection

teams will comprise of theAssistance and Inspection teams,

with UN-HABITAT engineersfrom the Housing Reconstruction

Center. The ERRA form will be

signed jointly by the Assistance

and Inspection team and UN-

HABITAT engineers / sub

engineers. UN-HABITAT will

provide an additional form with

written advice for remedial

measures where required.

1. Houses assessed as non-compliant, but covered by new ERRA standards and exemptions can be

certied as compliant.

2. Houses assessed as non-compliant houses, which have deviated from ERRA designs, but are

seismically resistant will be technically assessed, and can be certied as compliant.

3. Non-compliant houses, which have defects already covered by ERRA solutions for remedial

measures, will be assessed. Written instructions of what work is required and how to carry it out

will be issued to the house owner. If this work is carried out the house can be certied ascompliant.

4. Non-compliant houses which cannot be decided in the eld will be referred to ERRA for advice

by technical experts, (including NESPAK, UN-HABITAT).

The joint inspection will address the following:

Non-Compliance Referral System (NCRS)


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The billboard skins for Kohala Bridge and Neelum Crossing in Muzaffarabad were changed in January.

The new design is about installing an external band to remedy the non-compliance of constructing a

house without a lintel. The photo on the billboard is of the two room house which was remedied for

less than 20,000 PKR enabling the homeowner to become eligible for the nal payment of 50,000 PKR.

Billboards at Kohala and Neelum Crossing

Sharp Cut Films was hired in the second week

of January to complete the UN-HABITAT and

ERRA rural landless project documentary. Sharp

Cut Films is only a few years old but is led by

famous Television Host Tauseeq Haider. Filming

for the documentary began at the end of January

in Kaghan, Muzaffarabad and Hattian. The

documentary will be completed in May and the

UN-HABITAT Patika Field Information Ofcer is

the eld focal point for Sharp Cut Films until the

documentary is completed. 3 beneciaries who

lost their land in the earthquake and purchased new

land from the ERRA landless nancial assistance

have already been identied and interviewed for

the documentary.

Rural Landless Documentary

HRC Haveli was closed

in the second week

of January because

extreme weather

conditions did not

permit staff to conducteld work as scheduled.

A few feet of snow in

the areas of HRC Haveli

did not allow staff to

move around in the eld

and provide technical

advice to beneciaries

rebuilding. All HRC

Haveli staff were

relocated to other HRCs

of UN-HABITAT andHRC Haveli is set to

reopen in the rst week

of February.

HRC Haveli temporarily

shuts down operations

After a brief break, the UN-HABITAT sponsored housing

reconstruction radio program Cha Cha Chairman Ki Bhaitak

was back on air beginning January 24th. The guests on the

program were Sumera Bilal and Nasir Jamal of UN-HABITAT

and they discussed the Non-Compliance Referral System and

updated policy decisions from ERRA. Another live program

aired on January 31st and the guests were Waqas Hanif,

Deputy Director ERRA Rural Housing, Babar Tanwir and

Zahid Khattak of UN-HABITAT. Topics covered were the

role of UN-HABITAT in NCRS, the practicality of remedialmeasures and the rural landless project application deadline.

The current contract for the radio program is until May 2008

and BURAQ 104 has replaced FM 99 in Abbottobad to increase our coverage area.

Cha Cha Chairman back on Air


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As the housing program matures, HRC staff is increasingly required to make management decisions, be

involved in budgeting and forecasting and manage resources optimally. UN-HABITAT has engaged the

services of consultants to carry out a management training and capacity building exercise for essential

staff. Four 5 day trainings are set to take place between January and March and the rst training took

place in Muzaffarabad from January 25th

to the 29th.The workshop content focuses on

competencies related to leading, managing

and organizing key stages of the project

life cycle -planning, budgeting, scheduling,

implementing, supervising, analyzing and

properly completing related paper work.

It is envisaged that approximately 70 staff

members will be able to benet from this

activity.

A two day detailed Microsoft OfceTraining took place for all Information

Ofcers at HRC Muzaffarabad on

January 15th and 16th.

New compliance update trainings for

Engineers, Sub-Engineers, UN-HABITAT Social and Information staff, Partner Organizations and AI

Teams took place throughout the month in Muzaffarabad, Bagh and Rawalakot.

For the sustainability

and strategic planning of

transitional activities of Village

Reconstruction Committees the

Social Department has planned

to organize Union Council level

activist workshops across all

Housing Reconstruction Centers.

The Housing Reconstruction

Center in Rawalakot organized

the rst one day ActivistWorkshop for the Village

Reconstruction Committees of

Union Council Tain on January

23rd, 2008. The objective of

the workshop was to update

the activists about the current

reconstruction activities of UN-

HABITAT and to emphasize

safer reconstruction and the

sustainability of Village Level

Institutions for the future. More

than 50 activists participated

from different villages across

Union Council Tain. In a

brainstorming exercise, theparticipants noted the problems

being faced by the Village

Reconstruction Committees and

possible solutions to successfully

address them. A major topic of

discussion was the registration

of Village Reconstruction

Committees with the AJK Rural

Support Program. The criteria,

procedures and responsibilities

regarding the registration process

were discussed in detail. Along

with the ongoing formation and

support of Village Reconstruction

Committees, activist workshopswill continue to take place in the

next few weeks.

Management Training

Activist Workshop


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NWFP Support Team

The UN-HABITAT NWFP PO

support team (ve staff members)

started work in the third week

of October 2007 in NWFP.

Three staff members were

based in Abbottabad to supportBEST (Partner Organization

in Abbottabad working in 10

Union Councils of Mansehra

District) and two staff members

were based in Banna to support

Shelter For Life (working in

Battagram District). In January

the support team has continued to

train and brief staff of our Partner

Organizations to increase their

capacity and progressively move

towards safer reconstruction.The support team is helping

with the formation of Village

Reconstruction Committees and

developing linkages between

Partner Organization staff, Village

Reconstruction Committee

members and the Data Resource

Centers. A major achievement

this month was that through this

procedure 11 beneciary cases

had been forwarded to the Data

Resource Center to receive theirhousing nancial assistance.

For further information please contact:

Ali Raza

Senior Public Information Ofcer

Islamabad

[email protected]

051-8255230 ext. 131

Kamran Abbassi

Regional Information Ofcer

HRC [email protected]

058810-34994-5

Muhammad Rizwan

Regional Information Ofcer

HRC Bagh

[email protected]

058720-72529/45012

Asif Masood RajaField Information Ofcer

HRC Abbasspur

[email protected]

058710-52073

Muhammad Naseer Khan

Field Information Ofcer

HRC Bagh

[email protected]

058720-72529/45012

Aitzaz Ahmed Abbasi


HRC Dhirkot

[email protected]

0992-506302

Zain Bukhari


HRC [email protected]

058830-42589

Hamid Ali Bukhari


HRC Haveli

[email protected]

058720-32321

Muhammad Ayaz RajaField Information Ofcer

HRC Patika

[email protected]

058811-42944

Noor Sultan


HRC Rawalakot

[email protected]

058710-81096

un-habitat january 2008 newsletter

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