Takandeang village, Tapalang sub-district, located on the Trans Sulawesi Poros road, is a village approximately 34 kilometres from Mamuju City, West Sulawesi. Being far from the city causes limitations, the progress of modernisation is not evenly accessible to the local village community. It is where 48-year-old Rustam and his family live. He lives a simple and happy life with a wife and six children, five boys and a girl. Every day he works as a handyman to support family life and pay for the children’s education. He has been in this profession for many years.
Rustam and his family’s life changed when an earthquake measuring 6.2 on the Richter Scale struck the west coast of Sulawesi Island, Indonesia, on January 15, 2021, at 02.28 WITA. They were fast asleep when all of a sudden they were shaken by an earthquake. Rushing out of the house when he felt safe, he was grateful that he and his family survived the disaster. However, their house was slightly damaged by the earthquake.
Rustam was happy when his damaged home was included in the category of recipients of assistance from the local Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD). Unfortunately, he could not receive assistance because of the difference in the number of residents in his identity. Luckily, he was selected as one of ADRA’s beneficiaries for strengthening earthquake-resistant houses with ferrocement. Rustam attended the On-the-job Training conducted by ADRA on January 24 – 30, 2022. He excitedly said that he was ready to be accompanied and that his house was used as a model in his hamlet, namely Salumatti hamlet. Rustam, whose background is a labourer, invited his fellow labourers to join the training so that this knowledge can be used if there is work to build a house later.
“I am very happy and grateful to the ADRA team for the knowledge and assistance provided to the community in Takandeang Village. Personally, with this training, I feel very helpful, especially because of the costs borne by ADRA. Hopefully, this program can continue so that more people will benefit from ADRA’s assistance,” said Rustam.
