Turning climate-resilient construction knowledge into a new career

Above: Before attending the Haus Blong Yumi workshop, Sandy had no prior experience in the proper construction of a house. He has now used his skills and knowledge to build his family home and works in construction. Photo: World Vision Vanuatu

Home to beautiful white sandy beaches, crystal blue water and lush green forests, Teproma village is located along the southeast coast of Santo Island, just a few minutes’ drive from Pekoa International Airport and Luganville town in Vanuatu. Sandy Antas, his wife Lindy and their four kids live in the village with their immediate and extended families. 

Village life in Teproma has changed dramatically over the years with an increased number of natural disasters, greater demand for secondary and tertiary education, and changes from traditional to modern lifestyles. All these things come at a higher cost.

“I wanted to travel for work overseas through the mobility program so that I could earn more money to provide for my big family and build our own house,” said Sandy.  

“We used to live with my parents in their house before building our own house.” 

Above: One of the homes Sandy has constructed since attending the workshop. Photo: World Vision Vanuatu

The Vanuatu Labour Mobility Program sends workers from all around Vanuatu abroad to work on farms and access other employment opportunities in New Zealand and Australia at a higher pay rate than they would receive in Vanuatu. At the same time, workers develop new skills. The labour mobility scheme is also helping to address labour shortages in rural and regional Australia and New Zealand.  

Many people who travel for work overseas want to be able to support their family financially and put their earnings toward building modern housing that can withstand the growing impacts of natural disasters and climate change. While many people in Vanuatu are skilled in building traditional houses, they lack the knowledge on building modern, disaster resilient homes.  

Sandy has not travelled overseas for work yet due to his current work and family commitments but plans to do so in the future. He was fortunate to be part of the ‘Haos Blong Yumi’ workshop in October 2021, at the Maritime College in Luganville, facilitated by World Vision Vanuatu and the Vanuatu Department of Labour.

“I learnt a lot from the workshop, like ways to manage a building project, building cyclone resistant houses, and how to create bills of quantity and much more,” he said. 

Haos Blong Yumi is a reintegration workshop teaching recently returned labour mobility workers how to manage small building projects with savings they have earned overseas. The curriculum covers a wide range of topics, from designing and building disaster-proof houses, management and organisation skills, and ways to budget and reduce building costs for projects.  

Before attending the workshop, Sandy had no prior experience constructing a house, but he now uses his skills and knowledge to work in the field of construction.  

“Since attending the workshop I have built three houses in total. One of the houses is full concrete with three rooms, a living room, kitchen, storage room and a veranda. I have also learnt to manage my family’s finances and everyday activities as well.” 

“Life was a bit difficult in the past because we did not know where or how to start work on our house,” said Lindy, Sandy’s wife. “The major change came after we attended the Haos Blong Yumi workshop because things have become more clear and easier.” 

“Our future is better now knowing our children are living in a house that is safe and disaster resilient,” she said.  

“This workshop is crucial for workers in the Vanuatu Labour Mobility program planning to build a house for their family. It is important they know how to build houses that can also withstand natural disasters,” Sandy added. 

Haos Blong Yumi is a component of World Vision’s broader Australian Humanitarian Program (AHP) COVID-19 activation, funded by the Australian Government. The program will continue to be implemented in Torba and Sanma provinces under the five-year AHP Disaster READY program.  

The Haos Blong Yumi reintegration program complements World Vision’s and the International Organization for Migration’s Famili I Redi program, a pre-departure workshop for labour migrants and their spouse. Famili I Redi was also supported through an earlier AHP COVID-19 response in Vanuatu — learn more in this video.

In combination with Haos Blong Yumi’s one day pre-departure short course, the programs encourage overseas workers to start thinking and planning for their house building project well before they depart on their labour mobility journey.