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The Grace Road Group is rebuilding houses of villagers in Naucobau village in Ra that were damaged by Cyclone Winston.
Grace Road Company President, Daniel Kim said : “As fellow Fijians, and as Christians, we decided to begin the project to share the suffering that Naucobau Villagers are going through.”
He said the project called “Rebuild Fijian Village” started on March 4th after visiting Naucobau Village in one of the worse damaged areas caused by the Cyclone.
Mr. Kim said they are using many-years of Pre-fab building know-how’s and volunteers from GRG’s trained experts for quick restoration. “We started building permanent houses, so that the villagers can live in safety,” he said.
“GRG is using modern construction techniques and materials to provide quick, safe, and affordable housing. With the cleanup around the village, demolition, removing the debris, the difficulty of accessing the area, building 24 new homes in Naucobau Village is expected to take 3 months.”
He added they have already sent 13 GRG construction crew and construction materials and a digger to the site, already working.
“We will expand this project to other villages in Ra with our best efforts, and we are planning to implement renewable energy as well.
“If you visit the site, you will see our members and the villagers living and working together with big smiles.
“After inspecting the Ra Province many times, and with the guidance of the government, we began our project in Naucobau Village, because it is the most difficult to access, and it was the most affected by the cyclone.”
He said many nations and NGOs are focusing on emergency relief supplies like food, water and temporary shelters which were the most important.
“But we are focusing on the reconstruction project,” he said.
“If we do not take action now, the people will build their homes in the same method as before the cyclone using the same material, and if another cyclone comes, they might lose their homes again.”