Port Moresby – IOM, in partnership with the Oil Search Foundation, and supported by the Papua New Guinea (PNG) Emergency Controller’s Office, has delivered 360 shelter tool kits to families displaced by the major earthquake that hit the country’s Highlands in February 2018.   

A group of 36 villagers, including seven women, from Yalanda, Endela, Kekero and Isup/Uzup also received Build Back Safer training to help their communities use the kits to build more resilient shelters using traditional and locally sourced building materials. Staff from the Oil Search Foundation and the Community Development Initiatives also took part in the training.  

The kits, which include hand saws, claw hammers, tire wire, pad bolts, axes and nails will ensure that at least 1,800 vulnerable people in four remote communities (Yalanda, Endela, Isup/Uzup and Kekero) only accessible on foot or by helicopter have the necessary tools and skills to rebuild their homes. 

The distribution was implemented with support from the Government of New Zealand and in close cooperation with the Southern Highlands Provincial Administration. 

The M7.5 earthquake destroyed hundreds of homes and displaced thousands in provinces across Papua New Guinea’s Highlands in February 2018.  

When the disaster struck, the Oil Search Foundation provided warehouses and used its transport assets, including helicopters, to ferry in UN and other aid workers, together with emergency relief, to affected communities. 

IOM, which co-leads the shelter and non-food items cluster of aid agencies in Papua New Guinea, is working with government, UN and private sector partners to promote shelter recovery in communities across the earthquake-affected region.  

For more information please contact IOM Port Moresby. Lance Bonneau, Tel. +675 3213655, Email: lbonneau@iom.int or Peter Murorera, Email: pmurorera@iom.int