Caritas Freetown, with funding from CAFOD, has provided building materials to 40 vulnerable households across eight communities in the Western Area Rural and Urban District to support the repair of homes damaged by flooding and strengthen community resilience to future disasters.

The in-kind support is being provided under Caritas Freetown’s project, “Strengthening Community Flood Preparedness and Early Humanitarian Response for Vulnerable Communities and Households in Western Area Urban and Rural Districts, Sierra Leone.”

The eight beneficiary communities were Culvert, Portee, Bonga Town and Gray Bush in the Western Area Urban District, and Goderich-Crab Tong, Levuma, Waterloo-Bofla and Grafton in the Western Area Rural District received building material support under the project to strengthen flood resilience and assist vulnerable households. The support included bags of cement, zinc sheets, sticks and boxes of roofing nails, with five beneficiaries in Crab Town, Levuma Beach, among those receiving the materials.

Project Lead, Alimatu D. Turay explained that Caritas decided to provide building materials instead of cash after identifying concerns about whether cash assistance was always being used for its intended purpose.

“This time around, we changed our approach by providing building materials instead of cash support,” Alimatu D. Turay said.

She said the beneficiaries were selected based on their level of vulnerability, including households headed by widows and persons with disabilities.

“Within these communities, you have people who are more vulnerable than others. There are widows and persons with disabilities. We considered those prevailing circumstances during the selection process,” she said.

Alimatu D. Turay said the materials are intended to help beneficiaries refurbish homes damaged by flooding, adding that Caritas would return to the communities to monitor how the items had been used. “We will visit the communities after six days to monitor whether they have used the materials appropriately,” she said.

Representing the Executive Director, Rev. Fr. Paul Jusu said the donation reflects the Catholic Church’s commitment to promoting human dignity and well-being.

He encouraged beneficiaries to use the materials for their intended purpose and assured them of the Church’s continued support to vulnerable communities.

CAFOD Programme Manager for Sierra Leone and Liberia, Dennis Momoh, said his participation in the activity was aimed at assessing whether project reports reflected the situation on the ground.

Dennis Momoh expressed satisfaction with Caritas’ implementation of the project but said his visit also highlighted the need for further intervention.

“After seeing the community, there’s a need for us to do more,” he said.

He said CAFOD is willing to provide additional support but noted that funding remains a challenge. He urged beneficiaries to use the materials for their intended purpose.

Speaking on behalf of the Board, Peter Menjor praised CAFOD for providing funding to support vulnerable communities. He said part of his responsibility as a Board member is to provide oversight and ensure that project reports reflect the reality on the ground.

Peter Menjor also discouraged beneficiaries from selling the donated materials, stressing that such action would undermine the objective of the support.

Community Chief and beneficiary, Amadu Jalloh said Caritas had previously supported residents of Crab Town through a community cleaning exercise, which he said helped reduce the severity of flooding.

He said Caritas’ support to the community, including cash assistance and cleaning activities, had been consistent over the years.

Chief Amadu Jalloh assured the organisation that he would monitor the beneficiaries to ensure the materials are used for their intended purpose.

Another beneficiary, Kadiatu Yillah, expressed gratitude to Caritas and CAFOD, saying she would use the materials to restore parts of her home damaged by flooding.

She said flooding not only damages homes but also destroys household properties, making the support timely and significant.

“I pray that the Almighty continues to provide for Caritas and CAFOD so they’ll continue to help not only us, but others who are also in need of this support,” Kadiatu Yillah said. https://thecalabashnewspaper.com/archives/64977