Building a home for ‘these-abled persons’

MANILA, Philippines - BDO Foundation  and the Foundation for These-Abled Persons Inc. (FTI) are developing a model housing resettlement in Santa Fe, Leyte.  The 1.3-hectare resettlement site will house 100 shelter units complete with kitchenette and toilet facilities. Each duplex is 46 square meters or 23 square meters per home and made of all- concrete (including the roof) to make it more disaster-resilient.  

The total project cost, to include the cost of the land which FTI purchased through a long-term loan with Hong Kong Trust, is P28 million. BDO Foundation  has earmarked  P16M to fund part of the land and site development, the construction of 100 shelter units and workshop, the training of the workers, the tools and equipment for building. The workshop/multipurpose hall of about 300 square meters will be funded by BDO employees’ donations. This is where the community members will be trained on new construction technology of producing pre-fabricated walls for housing which can be their source of livelihood. 
The Foundation for These-Abled Persons, Inc. (FTI) was organized in 2009 to provide employment and empowerment to persons with disability. It is a member of the Institute for Social Entrepreneurship in Asia (OSEA) which initiated the setting up of the Reconstruction Initiative through Social Enterprise (RISE) as a platform for social enterpriser development to assist the marginalized sector in the rehabilitation process.