Maldives diving season
The house I was given is absolutely marvelous and I am so grateful for the support provided by the Red Cross. They have looked after us from the beginning till today. We are hoping the team that worked with us so closely will stay, as we will never be able to forget them.
As part of the Maldives recovery programme on Vilufushi, the last minute holidays maldives British Red Cross has trained 14 local community members on the operation and maintenance of the power and sanitation systems, as well as a further six people trained in finance and administration. This will ensure the community can maintain and manage the systems themselves.
Alastair Burnett, British Red Cross country representative for the Maldives tsunami recovery programme, said: As the community members return to their island, they have already begun to take ownership of their new houses, planting trees within their plots and planning for the future.
Real results
In total, we have built 466 houses across five islands. There have been many challenges in working in the Maldives, in particular the need to bring in construction materials to remote islands, but we have managed to achieve real results here and the community is very happy with the finished houses and infrastructure.
The homes are all earthquake-resistant and built to a high standard with modern electrics and amenities. Volunteers have been trained in domestic skills, such as rewiring electric power points, fixing hinges and window catches and using rainwater-harvesting tanks correctly. This means communities are able to deal with any domestic maintenance problems.
When Hussain Ahmed saw his new home on Vilufushi, he said: I can tell you that if we spent half of our lives we would not build a house like this. These houses are perfect and we cant complain. Also, today there is no poor and rich all are the same as everyone received the same type of house.
Cash grants
As well as building houses, the British Red Cross recovery programme helped families recover their livelihoods through the distribution of around 3,000 cash grants.
These grants have been used to invest in small businesses including growing cash crops such as cashew nuts, chillies and cucumbers. Other investments include setting up shops, fish farming, and buying goats and chickens.
Three goals scored by Jumanu Rai push Al Youth Linkage into barracuda the top four teams in the Maldives Football League
Jumanu Rai, Nepals star striker currently playing for the Al Youth Linkage (AYL) in the Maldives Football League, scored three goals (often referred to as a hat-trick) on Saturday against Kalhaidhoo, taking home a 4-0 win in Male.
Jumanu Rai scored two goals in the first half and another in the games second half. This game pushed the Al Youth Linkage team into the Maldives Football Leagues top four with 20 points.
Jumanu Rai and Santosh Sahukhala went to play in the Maldives Football League one and half months ago as part of the Al Youth Linkage team. Both players earn $1000.00 per month.
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