DART/Bosnia emergency shelter repair program : final report

No time frame is provided. The repairs completed under DART made possible the return of over 756 families in six villages, and the resumption of classes at three primary schools in two of the municipalities. Electrical connections were made to 171 homes at grant completion. Due to political conflicts within the municipality of Usora, electrical connectors were not completed in 79 houses in the village of Makljenovac. Elektropriveda (located in Zenica), was contracted by WV to repair the lines in Usora, Maglaj, and South Doboj. An agreement with the Zepce municipality about repairs to the main power line which would enable Elektropriveda to install the individual connectors to the homes was not reachable before the grant expired. At present, the main line is being repaired by Elektropriveda, which will enable the electrical connectors for the remaining 79 houses to be completed. Many of the families designated to return to these homes have opted to delay their return until electricity has been installed. The municipality in Makljenovac has allowed the homes to remain vacant and will wait for the rightful owners to return as electricity is installed, which WV is confident will occur within 2 months time. Throughout DART implementation, relief efforts were ongoing. WV utilized private funding and cost savings to provide each family with 10 cm of firewood, and two small garden tools. Starter kits consisting of stoves, mattresses, blankets, kitchen sets, a sleeping bag, and soap were donated by the UNHCR for WV to distribute to beneficiaries. Beneficiaries in need of hygiene kits were also provided small packs donated by DART; some 3,000 kits were distributed. In addition, some 300 school kits donated by U.S. church groups were provided to the repaired schools. Private funding was also used to purchase furniture for all three schools. At the completion of the project, students were able to resume a daily school schedule in favorable environments close to their homes. Cost-savings on all school reconstruction enabled WV to provide further and more extensive repairs, including a new heating system in the school at Ularice, a sidewalk for the school in Mravici, and a desperately needed sewage system at the school in Omajnska. In late August, WV received World Bank funding for a pilot project for small enterprises. To date, WV has provided 25 loans ranging from 1,000DM to 10,000DM in the project areas. These loans have provided a much needed impetus for families to begin functioning as productive participants in society and have been of immeasurable psychological benefit to families that have suffered tremendous loss. Traumatized and bitter citizens were given the means to support their families once again, and the inclination to resort to fighting practically disappeared. WV has been very successful in this endeavor and has been awarded additional funding to continue this project throughout central and northeast Bosnia. Several lessons about municipal-level politics were learned. WV"s policy to assist the needy in the fairest possible way enabled it to establish relationships from the grassroots level that are an invaluable asset on the road to reconciliation. Nonetheless, several problems emerged. In Usora, for example, it was not easy to find houses conforming to project-specific criteria in such a short period of time. This, in turn, caused further misunderstandings when WV undertook the responsibility of repairing the electrical connections for the houses in a village based on work to be completed by a third source. The lesson here is not to guarantee work that must be completed by someone over whom one has no control. The most valuable lesson learned in dealing with the municipalities was the need for strict diplomacy and uncompromising rules. WV implemented the DART project in its own way, and in the end the municipalities respected its professionalism.