It took five years after the horrific 2010 Haiti earthquake, but Anaïse Cétoute and her family finally have a home again.
The widow and mother of seven told Tearfund that she is very "happy and satisfied" with her new earthquake-resistant home in Haiti. She blessed the organization as well as its partners and supporters after they handed over the keys to her house.
After years in makeshift housing, she is thankful for the opportunity of a new start.
Cétoute, who now takes care of her brother's two children, was one of the millions who lost her home in Croix-des-Bouquets due to the massive quake in 2010. The quake also claimed the lives of 250,000 people.
As part of its response, Tearfund and its partners built permanent houses and schools for the victims, and has worked to educate them about the risk of disasters, in addition to supporting them in other areas of life such as providing hygiene awareness, and supporting livelihoods and people with HIV.
Coinciding with the fifth anniversary of the Haiti quake, Tearfund handed over keys to 19 new properties, which were built in partnership with World Relief and the Council of Evangelical Churches of Haiti (CEEH).
Tearfund Country Director Jean Claude Cerin said that they were one of the few organisations who were willing to go to remote mountainous areas around Leogane.
"Over three years the operational team built hundreds of transitional homes and schools, while water and hygiene work helped prevent a cholera epidemic," he shared.
But Cerin admitted that there are many more things that need to be done by the Haitian government and NGOs to ensure people are prepared for the next possible earthquake.
"Ignorance killed so many people in 2010, such as people outside running into buildings which then collapsed on them. Education is still needed because the geological faults which caused the quake are still active," Cerin stressed.
He hopes that there will be more changes in the way buildings are constructed from now on, so that people will no longer feel unsafe and panic in the event of another earthquake.
