| La Esperanza Housing & Development Casas de La Esperanza |
La Esperanza Housing & Development / Casas de la Esperanza is a non profit, non denominational, non
political corporation approved as a Non-profit Corporation at the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, USA, with tax exempt
status under sect. 501 (c) (3). The Asociación Casas de la Esperanza is also registered in Spain and in Nicaragua.
- EH&D helps families, who live on the outskirts of Granada, Nicaragua, and who are currently squatting, to build
their own houses, providing to them micro-credits without interest.
- EH&D is also helping these families with volunteer's assistance for getting a sustainable development through
direct support, courses and technical education, small business and cooperatives, thereby increasing their
expectation of a better future. Our goal is to create a model of integral and sustainable development for these
districts
This project was started in Cambridge, MA (USA) by several people from USA, Spain and Nicaragua.
The officers are: Angel Sáenz-Badillos and Judit Targarona, Professors of the Universidad Complutense of Madrid,
who from the beginning promoted this project. The supporters of EH&D are: in USA, Prof. David Kennedy, Director of the
European Law Research Center of Harvard Law School, who has been recently appointed Vice-President of Brown
University, Prof. Tony Gomez-Ibañez, Prof. Brad Epps, Eleanor and Miles Shore, Prof. Luis Girón Negrón, Prof. Merilee
Grindle, from Harvard University. Teresa (Guillén) Gilman, Teresa Márquez, Doug Laidlaw, Angel Ramon Sáenz-Badillos,
Matías Irigoyen and David del Villar. In Spain, Mercedes Lopez Salvá, Octavio Ruiz-Manjón Cabeza, Julia Mendoza and
Pilar Saquero, Professors of the Universidad Complutense of Madrid, Oscar Martínez (Madrid), Arantxa Lozano (Málaga),
Dácil Pérez (Tenerife), Raquel Galindo and Santos Ruesga, Professors of the Universidad Autónoma of Madrid, and
Manuel Ortega (Sevilla). In Nicaragua, María Auxiliadora Martínez, lawyer, Rosalía Carmen Castillo Sevilla, Mayor of the
city of Granada, Angélica Rivas, a resident of the quarter of La Prusia, Manuel Arana Rochar, Hazle Almaura Hernández,
Julia Cano and Carlos Arana Alvarado, from the Ministry of Education.
- Our current project focuses on families of La Prusia that live as squatters on a land that is not their own.
- EH&D is helping these families to build their own houses, providing them with a piece of land with roads, water,
electricity, and building materials in form of a non-interest micro-credit that they will be paying back in very small
monthly amounts. The project has been inspired by the work of M. Yunus, recently awarded with the 2006 Nobel
Peace prize due to his efforts in the fight against poverty.
- EH&D has also started to provide these families with direct assistance and technical education thanks to
volunteers that are coming from all over the world.
- EH&D does not forget the aged persons of the community. It tries to improve their living conditions.
| La Esperanza Housing & Development EH&D, April 2008 |
| This is our practical way to work for eradicating extreme poverty and hunger (UN Millennium Development Goals # 1) |
POLICY EH&D does not have administration expenses. It depends exclusively on the unpaid voluntary work of its promoters, on site volunteers, and on the collaboration of the Nicaraguan families that participate in its PROJECTS. All the revenues of EH&D come from the DONATIONS of institutions, private entities, and people. All the donations are used entirely for the EH&D PROJECTS. EH&D thanks all donors and certifies and informs them personally regarding the destination of their donation. We thank institutions and private entities for their generosity, but we appreciate in a very special way small personal donations. They make us aware of individuals' personal support and appreciation for our work. EH&D gives remunerated work only to the local responsible person of La Prusia, and to local professionals (bricklayers, electricians... etc,) |
| Work done by Casas de la Esperanza Although we are a young organization, we and our volunteers have been very active in the district of La Prusia. But we would like that the promoters of change be the inhabitants of La Prusia themselves. These are some of the concrete actions that we have carried out in the district: 1. Houses
installing the electricity (primary and secondary wires) and connecting the plot to the main water pipes. 36 families are building their houses of 420 sq. feet. in plots of 1600 - 1700 sq. feet. Volunteers from many countries are helping them. This project is making good progress: Ten families who have concluded the essential of their houses are living there, eight more houses are roofed, and other fifteen have already more than half of their walls. There will be also green spaces and a playground for the children. The Neighborhood association is already operating. They are responsible for the coexistence, upkeep and maintenance of the common zones. |
2. Water Along with the most urgent problems in Nicaragua: houses, education and jobs, La Prusia has the additional problem of getting potable water. Until now the water was brought in from Granada to the shacks with an expensive and insufficient system of pumps. The families of La Prusia had water during just 4 hours every second day, and they had to buy it at a higher price than in the city. EH&d has bought a piece of land in La Prusia with a well and we are providing water to the community at the price of cost of the electricity. EH&D has installed in the well a powerful pump, of 7.5 HP, that allows to extract 60 gallons per minute. The electrical system and the connections are finished, the water has been analyzed and the last technical problems have been solved. The community of La Prusia will be in charge of the system of distribution of the water. Thanks to this the families are already beginning to receive less expensive water more frequently. |
The Well
The Water Board Meeting
3. Kids Education After the School & Reading's Club The school schedule is very reduced and insufficient; for that reason our volunteers help the schoolchildren after the school time in our School-workshop. Throughout the week they help them with their homework and preparation for examinations, etc. Following the initiative of Kevin, a boy of the district, we also have weekly a reading's club where the children become familiar with handicraft and books. Some movies are also screened for the children on Saturday morning. Competitions Piñatas |
4. Adult Education & English Clases We have co-organized with the Ministry of Education courses of literacy for adults and teenagers, with materials and a television facilitated by the Ministry (the program “Yo sí puedo”). Some adults are learning to read and to write, and some young people improve their knowledge. Some Nicaraguans help us in these programs. For the most advanced students, we also offer English and computer classes. We hope to be able to extend all these courses soon. |
6. Health We have an agreement with the Palmira Clinic, which is in charge of La Prusia, and once a week a doctor and nurses of the Clinic come to our model-house to attend patients; they bring free drugs for the most common needs. Two volunteers from Spain, Patricia, a medicine student and Jose Luis, a doctor, have done also great work helping the people and detecting the health problems of the families and accompanying them to the suitable centers to solve their problems. They have also given talks on first aid, accident prevention and the use of contraceptives. EH&D has brought to the district a group of dentists called DENTISTAS SIN FRONTERAS to La Prusia. We thank them for their help, they have been doing a great job. We are also helping to obtain reading glasses to the adults who need them. |
7. Women's Association Manuel, Arantxa, Jon and other Volunteers of EH&D have helped the women of La Prusia to create a Women's Association. Here are some pictures of the informational meeting in front of the EH&D's Workshop Building |
La Esperanza Housing & Development Casas de la Esperanza (EH&D) is a non denominational, non political NGO, tax exempt: 501 (c) (3). It develops housing and provides technical education to families who are currently squatters, living on the outskirts of Granada, Nicaragua. admin@casas-de-la-esperanza.org |
5. Sewing & Handicraft Workshops We have started sewing and handicraft workshops with the help of several Nicaraguan ladies, these courses have had a great acceptance among the women of the district (more than 40 attend regularly the courses). We hope that this kind of expertise may become soon a source of additional income for a few families, although it will be necessary to sell them. Can you help us to find a market for these products? |
| The Alcohol-Free Party inside of EH&D's Workshop Building |
| WHO WE ARE |
Kevin in front of the model house of EH&D
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