Innumerable families in Peru have inadequate housing – 70% of all construction in the country is informal – due to poverty and a lack of skilled builders. Etex recognised this and has acted. Our goal is to help such families by providing suitable, safe and comfortable homes, at no cost to them.
A coordinated effort
The process started with the SELAVIP Foundation, which ran a contest for social housing. SELAVIP has been funding housing projects to shelter very poor families living in cities of Latin America, Africa and Asia and has been a long-standing partner of Etex in social projects. In this project, the local NGO Cenca entered and won the 2021 contest. The funding of the project is provided by both parties. SELAVIP’s Latin American headquarters in Chile initially contacted Etex Chile, but all the work and the drywall material donations were made by Etex Peru. More than 47 low-income families in the José Carlos Mariategui neighbourhood, a populous area with low incomes and widespread poverty in Lima’s San Juan de Lurigancho district, will benefit from the free construction of homes using our drywall construction system. Cenca is working closely with the community, enabling it to identify which families would benefit most from this project.
Construction system ideal for local environment
The construction process has limitations due to the location of the site on the upper parts of steep mountains, which makes the transfer of heavy materials like concrete or bricks difficult and expensive. Lightweight construction is therefore an ideal solution. The houses will be approximately 27 m2, come only with a concrete floor and be built with Etex materials for the rest of each house. The families stand to benefit from the homes’ fire resistance, anti-seismic characteristics and speed of installation, with the added bonus of Eternit polyethylene water tanks installed. To date, 14 houses have been built through the initiative.
Training for long-term gains
Recognising that sustainable solutions are the way forward for our communities, Etex’s technical team trains locals in the use and application of drywall. The locals help in the construction that is managed by a foreman and his/ her assistants. Three people provide training for supply chain and logistics, donations of materials and coordination of delivery. The legal, finance and marketing departments are also involved, notably in preparing contracts and supporting the administrative work of the projects. In total, 10- 15 Etex teammates are taking part and regularly communicating with the entire organisation on progress made.
