Shortly after the 12 January earthquake which killed an estimated
212,000 Haitians and displaced more than one million persons,
hundreds of thousands of terrified survivors took their meagre
belongings and began setting up makeshift shelters all over the
city.  A group of 864 persons (140 families) erected haphazard
shelters with whatever piece of cloth, towel, sheet or rag they had
managed to salvage and built a makeshift camp at Parc St. Claire,
in the Delmas neighborhood of Port au Prince.

Islamic Relief UK, one of IOM’s partners working on
emergency shelter solutions, chose Parc St. Claire as the first
site where they would work to improve living conditions for its
residents.

Moustafa Osman, Head of the Humanitarian Department of Islamic
Relief UK, explains, "We chose this site after assessing many
makeshift camps because of the deplorable conditions.  Many
residents had nothing over their head."

With the site identified, the Islamic Relief UK team got to
work. "We got a bulldozer and cleaned the place up; this gave us a
bit more space," recalls Osman.  "It was very difficult
because we had to move people to one side to clean the space, level
the land and do site planning."

The site planning revealed that the initial calculations of a
nine square metre plot per family would not be possible. 

"We realized that the land would allow for a seven square metre
space per family.  If we were to go ahead with the initial
plan of nine square metres, we would have to ask some families to
move out of Parc St. Claire," recalls Osman.

So Osman and his staff decided this was a decision that could
only be made by the residents.

"We formed a committee of three men and three women and told
them to decide whether to allot a larger plot to each family and
ask some residents to leave, or whether they would agree on a
smaller space in order to include everyone living there," continues
Osman.

After some tense discussions, the committee decided to include
everyone even if it meant a smaller space for each family.

"So we got to work at four the next morning.  We started
with a short team briefing to make sure nobody would waste a minute
of their day," recounts Osman.  "Once at the site, we worked
more than 13 hours that first day, but the camp was set up in two
days."

Islamic Relief UK also provided medical checkups, a distribution
of non-food items such as kitchen set, jerry cans and hygiene kits
and installed a water bladder which will provide up to 15 litres of
water per person per day.

IOM and its partner agencies working in the area of camp
coordination and camp management (CCCM) have now identified 332
spontaneous settlement sites in and around the capital
Port-au-Prince, hosting more than 104,000 families (543,000
individuals).  These sites range from a few dozen to several
thousand families.

An estimated 460,000 individuals have left Port-au-Prince to
areas less affected by the earthquake.  A further 200,000
individuals have been displaced in areas such as Jacmel and Petit
Goave, where IOM and its partners continue their distribution of
shelter materials and non-food relief items.

In Port-au-Prince, CCCM agencies are working on improving
shelter and creating drainage and latrines, focusing on a group of
19 sites, each hosting more than 5,000 persons.

IOM and CCCM partners have also started sample profiling of
displaced families to identify needs gaps.  Initial findings
indicate that displaced families still have difficulties accessing
basic services and commodities, including drinking water and
adequate sanitation, shelter and food.  In a majority of
sites, camp committees have been set up to manage and maintain
existing services.

The government has taken the lead in identifying land for rubble
disposal and the resettlement of people now living in congested
sites.  A minimum of 450 hectares of flat, non-flood plain
land is needed to settle up to 100,000 displaced people.  To
date, only 19 hectares have been identified and made available.

As part of the UN Flash Appeal launched on 18 February in New
York, IOM is appealing for USD 123 million for camp coordination
and management; emergency shelter; cash-for-work for thousands of
people in areas like rubble removal and drain clearing; water,
sanitation and hygiene projects for displaced families; health
projects, including mental health support for survivors and help
for earthquake victims and their families returning home following
hospital treatment.

For more information on Parc St. Claire and Islamic Relief UK,
readers can contact:

Moustafa Osman

E-mail: "mailto:moustafa.osman@irworldwide.org" target="_blank" title=
"">moustafa.osman@irworldwide.org