Home in Place has partnered with Lake Macquarie based charity, Church 4 Life, to provide a container load of second-hand clothing to communities in Fiji. This collaboration provided the Pacific nation with more than 20 tonnes of quality clothing, which will clothe more than 20,000 people.
Home in Place’s Group Chief Financial Officer, Lisa Evans, joined Church 4 Life Managing Director Gail Taylor on a visit to Suva, meeting with local port staff, small business owners, their employees, and recipients of the clothing. The visit also provided an unfiltered view of Fiji’s growing informal settlements, which house more than 20% of the country’s population [1]. These settlements are home to thousands of working-class families, who struggle to make ends meet and are not able to be housed by Fiji’s under-resourced public housing system.
“The impact on a family when they are unable to have adequate housing can be profound – ranging from affecting health through exposure to unhygienic or unsafe living conditions” Ms Evans said.
“This impacts academic performance, from inability to attend school or home environment not conducive to study; and financial strain caused by high cost of housing or inability to obtain work close to the informal settlement.”
“These can have long term negative impacts perpetuating a cycle of poverty.”
“Limited access to suitable housing hinders the pursuit of education, job security and advancement and overall quality of life.”
The dwellings within these settlements, often constructed using reclaimed building materials, rarely have access to safe power, sewerage, and clean drinking water. They are more susceptible to the impacts of climate change and provide little personal security.
Ms Evans said the need for adequate and affordable accommodation is dire. “This may be a seemingly small step in assisting with the need in the country, but it is a step in the right direction and each step, no matter how small, helps gain momentum.”
“It was a privilege to be provided the opportunity to partner with Church 4 Life in a service they have been providing for over a decade.”
Ms Taylor, having operated the Church 4 Life charity since 2009, said “We don’t get to choose where we are born”
“For many people born into poor families, basics like food, clothing and housing can be a constant struggle.”
“It was my honour to meet firsthand, the people in Fiji who have been helped through this partnership. It is very clear that there is plenty more that can be done to bring both short term assistance and long-term solutions to the wonderful people of Fiji.”
Home in Place’s partnership with Church 4 Life is a small step, but a step in the right direction, in implementing our vision that all people have appropriate and affordable housing and are engaged in sustainable communities.
Since partnering with Church 4 Life, Home in Place has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Fiji Public Rental Board, participating in a peer-to-peer learning exchange. This partnership aims to better understand the need for affordable housing in Fiji and expand the knowledge and efficiency of both organisations in solving this need.
[1] Presterudstuen, G. H. (2023). Paradox and Pity: What We Can Learn From Fiji’s Urban Squatter Settlements. The Journal of Pacific History, 59(2), 240–254. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223344.2023.2254439
