On 26 December 2004, a magnitude 9.0 earthquake off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia, triggered a series of massive tsunamis that devastated communities in ten countries surrounding the Indian Ocean.

In July 2005, as the full extent of the destruction became clearer, aid agencies and governments realised that the rebuilding of lost homes would take many years. Basic infrastructure had been destroyed and most of the already inadequate building and housing documentation had been lost. A severely traumatized population remained largely displaced and aid agencies were stretched to the limits of their capacities.

The following figures give an indication of the situation facing tsunami survivors and aid agencies at this time. The situation was expected to worsen with the arrival of the approaching wet season.

Destroyed houses (not including Nias):		116,000
Houses needed approx:		100,000
Displaced persons in Aceh:		436,820
Of which:
	Living in temporary living centres:	75,576
	Living in self-settled tent camps:	67,504
	Living with host families:	293,740
	Displaced persons in Nias:	98,844

Those living in tents were finding it particularly hard. Indeed some were already onto their third tent. It was therefore decided by a number of aid agencies, led by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and United Nations, to implement a temporary housing programme to provide better conditions for the beneficiaries whilst the reconstruction programme got underway. This temporary housing programme evolved into the transitional shelter programme.

In August 2005, the International Federation assumed the lead role in the provision of transitional shelters for Aceh and Nias provinces. The programme had a working budget of CHF 129 million, making it the largest single programme of its kind in the history of the Red Cross Red Crescent. The budget included the procurement of material for 20,000 shelters as well as funding the necessary logistical, operational and financial support.

The aim of the shelter programme was to provide transitional accommodation for people living in tents before they moved to a permanent structure. The target population also included people who did not receive any tents during the earlier tent distribution and those who received tents that disintegrated over time and were living in makeshift shelters. The shelters needed to last for up to four years, with the International Federation responsible for designing and procuring the shelter units.

Progress and achievements

The 25-square-metre lightweight units were designed by Red Cross Red Crescent construction engineers for local conditions, ease of delivery and speed of assembly. Each unit comprised an easy to assemble galvanised steel frame that could be securely erected without the use of electric tools. The frame was then clad in pre-cut timber, which was also used for the floor. The complete transitional shelter can be built in one to two days by four people.

Each transitional shelter kit included the frame, foundations, aluminium sheeting for the roof, timber for walls and floors and tools, as well as written construction guidelines. To ensure optimal stability and to increase earthquake resilience, the frame and roof were braced and the platform reinforced sign. The roofing sheets were fixed to the frame with a special attachment technique to ensure better wind resistance. To improve living conditions, the frame has a raised floor to avoid floods and a large roof to protect against rain.

The shelter kits did not include covering of the gables. However, it did include a reimbursement valued at IDR 550,000 (CHF 68) to pay for the cost of gable materials and necessary labour costs. The reimbursement of the labour cost and gable material as above was provided on the basis of the monitoring outcomes. The payment was done either in instalments: 50 per cent upon erection of the frames and 50 per cent upon completion of the shelter, or in full upon full completion.

Many elements affected the design of the transitional shelters. These include the timeframe of the shelter construction, the quality of the material, and the technical skills of those constructing the shelters. Since land issues were not always resolved, the ability to quickly disassemble the shelters was an important factor in the design. Considering the difficulty and delays in the provision of permanent houses, the shelters were designed to last up to four years (the change in terminology from “temporary” to “transitional” shelter reflects this).

Living area of 25 m2 easily divided into two rooms and includes two covered verandas on each side. Height from 2.1m to 3.4m One gutter for water capture if needed Frame is supported by a base plate which anchors 30 centimetres deep in the ground. Graphic: International Federation (p17278)

International tenders were run and 17,000 transitional shelter frames were ordered from Siam Steel in Thailand while another 3,000 were purchased from Bluescope Steel in Indonesia. As much as 32,000 m3 of timber was procured through international tender from Jewson’s in the UK.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) provided a list of active organizations which formed the basis for initiating contact with potential implementing partners that were already working in the affected communities and were interested in being involved in the programme were encouraged to sign up. This enabled speedy distribution of the transitional shelters and prevented a duplication of procedures. Partners then received documents presenting an overview of the programme which explained the role of each party involved and the implementation mechanism.

Upon signing up to the programme, the partners submitted a layout plan, a beneficiary list agreed by communities and a proposed delivery schedule to the International Federation for approval. Subsequently, an agreement and implementation procedure was formalized between the implementing partners and the International Federation.

The objective of the programme was to facilitate the beneficiaries’ return to their original land or to provide settlements and improve living conditions for beneficiaries whose land is no longer available. In cases where the original tent sites were inappropriate for the provision of adequate assistance due to limited accessibility, the risk of flooding and of vector proliferation, alternative locations were identified through site selection with the support of local authorities.

The implementation partners dealt with the local government at the sub-district level on land issues. Only if no resolution was achieved did they seek decisions from the governor’s office. In cases where beneficiaries claimed land ownership, certificates of ownership had to be presented to the implementing partner before construction could begin.

Beneficiaries in Aceh Jaya in their transitional shelters. Photo: International Federation/Hotli (p17291 and p17292) .

According to the Transitional Shelter impact survey report conducted in October 2007, only 3.5 per cent of shelters in transitional shelter settlements and nine per cent of shelters in return areas were used for business purposes. The vast majority were used as accommodation.

The International Federation provided 24 field supervisors to support implementing partners. These supervisors were responsible for providing information to communities, for supporting better coordination between partners and communities and for conducting on-site quality control and construction safety training. A minimum of two training sessions were provided for each community, teaching them to erect the frames and attach the timber.

The International Federation supervisors were also tasked with the monitoring of the programme. This included mapping each completed shelter using a Global Positioning System (GPS) as well as collecting visual documentation of the shelter locations (detailed maps can be found at www.ifrc.org/tsunami). The supervisors reported daily reports on results and difficulties to the programme coordinator in Banda Aceh and drafted weekly reports for implementing partners and stakeholders.

In cases when there was no interested implementing partner, the International Federation took responsibility for the construction of the shelters.

After more than two years, the transitional shelters programme has provided shelter to 19,923 households, providing shelter for those identified as living in tents in August 2005. Today more than 80,000 people in 382 communities have high quality shelter as they continue to rebuild their lives.

A preliminary impact evaluation was carried out involving 1,561 households in four districts of Aceh province. The evaluation provided a clear picture of the beneficiaries’ satisfaction with, and perception of, the programme, capturing the demographic profile of the beneficiaries and giving an overview of the level of access to essential support services. The report documents very positive feedback from the beneficiaries and has been used as a tool to identify possible additional community support.

An International Federation supervisor is providing information about the project to the communities’ officials. Photo: International Federation (p17276)

Approximately 98 per cent of transitional shelter settlement residents and 99.5 per cent of return area residents reported that the transitional shelter programme has been and will continue to be extremely important in rebuilding their livelihoods.

More than 80 per cent of sample households reported investing resources or time in improving their shelters. The most common improvements included the separation of rooms and the expansion of rooms or patios. Nearly a third of households reported having decorated the exterior of their shelters. Other common adaptations include the addition of a kitchen and/or window.

It is also important to mention that the shelter programme has indirectly influenced other organizations to support them with additional facilities, such as water and sanitation, and livelihood. Finally, the programme has had an important visibility impact for the Red Cross Red Crescent in Aceh, with four Indonesia Red Cross branches and five partner Red Cross societies directly implementing the programme.

Complexity in beneficiary selection
The continuous and at times chaotic movement of the affected population in the wake of the tsunami made for a particularly complex beneficiary selection process. This contributed to delays from the start of the programme.

A logistical challenge
The programme met with enormous constraints resulting from the destruction of infrastructure by the tsunami, especially on the west coast of Aceh. The road to the south was mostly destroyed and when the rainy season arrived in 2005 many parts of the road were completely cut off.

Due to financial restraints, OCHA was forced to withdraw their logistics support, meaning that the International Federation had to step in and take over all aspects of the programme, increasing the required budget by CHF 5.8 million. Materials arriving at the International Federation’s logistic centre in Medan were transported by trucks to different logistic bases. To reach remote areas, the Federation mobilized a special fleet of 60 M6 trucks and also land craft and local speed boats when necessary.

In total, 36,000 tons of construction materials were delivered to 11 districts in the west and east coasts of Aceh, including remote sites such as north Simeulue and Pulo Aceh islands. Less than 0.4 percent of frames were damaged during transport from the different warehouses to beneficiary sites.

Logistics challenges, transportation, storage and trained human resources. Photo: International Federation (p17277)

Complexity in Federation’s coordination role
A major challenge was convincing other agencies to sign up to the programme despite the difficulties some of them were having in their own permanent housing programmes. It was necessary for the International Federation to convince them that their financial contribution would be minimal and therefore will not affect their other programmes.

In September 2005, a plan of action was established and the role of each partner was divided as follows.

• The Office of the United Nations Recovery Coordinator for Aceh and Nias (UNORC) was responsible for the overall coordination of the transitional shelter programme action plan. The planning and implementation of logistics related to the transitional shelter programme was provided by the UN Logistic Coordination Service (UNLCS). The World Food Programme (WFP) played a vital role in logistics (in addition to the International Federation).
• The International Federation took the lead role in coordinating the implementation of the programme with a particular emphasis on procurement and provision of temporary shelter material.
• The Agency of the Rehabilitation and Reconstruction for the Region and Community of Aceh and Nias (BRR) was responsible for facilitating the cooperation and consultation between the appropriate government agencies, the private sector and the humanitarian community to ensure the provision of adequate temporary settlement.
• The governor’s office directed district and village leaders to take responsibility for identifying sites for temporary settlement and to provide necessary support from the district level planning agency and public works departments for site preparation and infrastructure Local government authorities were responsible for the rapid allocation of suitable land for people moving into temporary shelters and the provision of equipment to assist with site preparation.
• Implementing partners with available resources were asked to manage implementation of the temporary shelter programme in entire districts and sub-districts The implementation included the complete process of community mobilization and coordination, site verification and provision of necessary services (such as water and sanitation, health, and education), erection of structures, collection of information and monitoring in cooperation with the Indonesia Red Cross field assistants and International Federation managers.
• In areas where there were no implementing partners, Indonesia Red Cross branches also took direct responsibility for the implementation of the programme, or the provision of Red Cross volunteers to support partner Red Cross societies in implementation.
• Red Cross societies were asked to support the programme as implementing partners in key areas, or to provide supporting services to other implementing partners and to integrate those activities with their other ongoing recovery activities whenever possible.

Beneficiaries modifying their shelters to their needs. Photo: International Federation (p17302)

In reality various factors forced the revision of this arrangement and the International Federation’s role was extended to fill the gaps. When the budget for the programme was first formulated, UNORC agreed to oversee and pay for logistics. However, due to financial constraints they were forced to withdraw this support. The International Federation then stepped in and took over all aspects of the programme which increased the budget requirement for programme implementation and added an enormous burden to the tsunami recovery programme. The International Federation were also involved in the implementation, particularly in areas not covered by implementing partners.

The International Federation coordinated the shelter response with 35 implementing partners in 11 districts. The implementing partners included local NGOs, international humanitarian agencies, five Red Cross national societies and four Indonesia Red Cross branches. Regular information was disseminated to these organizations and once the shelter design was finalized, the partners that were interested in participating in the programme attended weekly meetings (over seven months) during which the programme model was discussed.

The International Federation transitional shelter programme cost CHF 114.6 million to build 19,923 shelters equivalent to CHF 5,742 per shelter.

Items	CHF (million)
Construction material	100.90
Transport	5.80
Capital equipment	0.24
Warehousing and handling	2.80
Staffing	3.50
Erection allowance	1.00
General expenses	0.40
Total	114.60

The International Federation organized international, national and local media tours to introduce and publicize the programme. By providing the public with as much information on the programme as possible, there will be more support from the community which will lead to its success.

Communication activities were carried out during the programme implementation as well. The International Federation trained communities on how to install the shelters properly to enable them to reinstall the transitional shelters anytime and anywhere as needed. In addition, the shelter programme was also publicized in two sessions of interactive radio talk shows, to inform the communities on the programme and answer problems that they faced. The response of the communities towards the talk show was very positive. Some beneficiaries called and sent text messages to inquire about the transitional shelters. The questions ranged from what the criteria was to receive a shelter and how the ownership of the shelter is assigned, to whether the beneficiaries were allowed to expand its structure. In the talk show, the community also shared experiences of staying in the shelters and therefore received better understanding of the programme.

Rumoh Aceh radio talk show funded by the Irish Red Cross. Photo: International Federation (p17337)