Habitat for Humanity (HFH) marked World Habitat Day (October 1) by opening its regional centre for Europe and central Asia in Bratislava, HFH program director Lucija Popovska said at a press conference in Bratislava.
HFH, which operates in 19 countries around the world, finds or builds a better home for a family every 12 minutes. And with the help of a global network of volunteers, it opens some 1,500 new homes each year.
HFH said it aims to improve housing conditions in countries such as Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Romania and Tajikistan.
"The quality of housing in these regions varies, and we think of it as a ticking time bomb,” said Popovska.
In Slovakia, the organisation co-operates with the Roma community by trying to spark people's interest in improving their housing conditions. It has worked with ETP Slovakia – the Centre for Sustainable Development NGO to offer mini-loans of up to $1,500 to Roma families.
ETP director Slávka Macáková says the association has had good experiences with local authority representatives as well as the people themselves. TASR
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
