UNDP and Chinese Government Join Hands to Scale Up Rebuilding Efforts in Quake-Hit Areas

LGOP and UNDP Aim to Strengthen Initiative to Help the Most Vulnerable in Long-Term Recovery and Reconstruction

GUANGYUAN, Sichuan, China, May 13 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- In view of the one-year anniversary of the Wenchuan Earthquake, State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development (LGOP) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) are working together to step up reconstruction efforts in quake-hit areas, with a focus of the poorest communities.

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As part of this mission, LGOP, UNDP and Sichuan Provincial Poverty Reduction Office jointly organized a field visit to Makou Village of Lizhou County, Guangyuan City in Sichuan Province. Subinay Nandy, Country Director of UNDP China, and Xu Hui, Director of Planning Department of LGOP, were among those who participated in the trip.

Makou village is one of the 19 pilot poor villages in Sichuan, Gansu and Shaanxi provinces established by LGOP in partnership with UNDP, CIDA and other national and local partners as part of its Early Recovery and Disaster Risk Reduction Programme, aimed to assist the Government and affected communities in meeting the unprecedented challenges of recovery, reconstruction and risk management. The programme also supports LGOP in scaling up the participatory approach in recovery construction to promote the communities' participation in building their own new life.

"We are here to obtain first-hand information on the development of the programme and to better understand the needs and challenges that require further attention and assistance by directly communicating with the villagers," said Nandy.

"UNDP is focusing on assisting the most vulnerable: children, women, the elderly and disabled people," said Nandy. "The ultimate goal of the programme is not only to help the people in need regain their old lives, but to build a life that is better and greener."

Xu Hui said, "It is the responsibility of LGOP to help the communities to reconstruct because many earthquake affected areas are also poor rural areas. We will guide 4,834 poor villages in the three provinces in reconstruction. It is expected that the development gap between the poor and the better-off will be reduced during the reconstruction by speeding up the development of infrastructure, production and self-development capacity."

While at Makou Village, members of the field visit observed the rural permanent housing construction, including the on-going construction of a village welfare house to accommodate vulnerable households. Through a participatory approach encouraged by the programme, all local households have been involved in the recovery and reconstruction planning process to prioritize their needs and actions.

"I lost both my daughter-in-law and grandson during the earthquake, and was left with no source of income," said Wang Bilie, a 54-year-old woman from the village. "With the help of the village, I can support myself by participating in the cash-for-work scheme, and through raising poultry, further supported by village-level micro-finance. I now have confidence to face the future."

The duration of the programme is two years starting from September 2008, and the total amount of fund is US$5.36 million, including UNDP fund and approximately US$1.65 million (2 million Canadian dollars) contributed by the Canadian Government. Areas of work have included community redevelopment, the restoration of livelihoods and economic life, environmental improvement, and the promotion of clean energy usage. Over 25,000 people have directly benefited from the programme, including over 15,000 women and children.

Based on the successful experience gained and lessons learned from the pilot villages, UNDP and LGOP will proceed to extend such recovery efforts to reach more than 4,800 of the poorest villages struck by the disaster.

UNDP fosters human development to empower women and men to build better lives in China. As the UN's development network, UNDP draws on a world of experience to assist China in developing its own solutions to the country's development challenges. Through partnerships and innovation, UNDP works to achieve the Millennium Development Goals and an equitable Xiao Kang society by reducing poverty, strengthening the rule of law, promoting environmental sustainability, and fighting HIV/AIDS. http://www.undp.org.cn