Peru

Context at a glance

International and local volunteers, workers and homeowner families move blocks to the site of a Habitat house under construction in Urubamba, Peru

Peru is a nation of striking geographic diversity. Its narrow strip of desert on the coast rises inland to meet the Andes Mountains that tower to 18,000-foot snow-capped peaks before dropping off to the Amazon rainforests.

Over the past decade, the economy has stabilised, but an estimated 54 percent of the Peruvian population lives below the poverty line. Massive migrations from the countryside to the urban centres have exacerbated the need for decent housing for thousands of families. "Pueblos jovenes", as the shanty-towns are called, spring up around the cities where families erect flimsy shelters made of straw mats, wood scraps and any other available materials.

Habitat for Humanity programme

The majority of HFH Peru's houses have been built on land donated by the municipal government. In Tacna, a Habitat town has been built, consisting of a community of 500 Habitat houses, a church, a school and a medical clinic.

Habitat houses are built of cement block or fired-brick with fibre-cement roofs, cement floors and wooden doors and windows.

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