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Friday, March 29, 2024

PruVolunteers build homes in Bantayan Island

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Prudence Foundation, the charitable arm of Pru Life UK’s regional head office Prudential Corporation Asia, held the fourth leg of its Regional PruVolunteer Program on June 18 to 25 to help build more disaster-resilient homes in Bantayan Island, Cebu.

About 83 employee-volunteers of Pru Life UK and sister companies from 13 countries in Asia rendered a week-long volunteer work to help complete the remaining 62 houses committed by Prudence Foundation.

“Super typhoon Yolanda took away countless homes, jobs, and lives, and even after more than two years, it is evident that much help is still needed. This is why we are humbled and grateful to have this opportunity once again to help in rebuilding and making lives better for the residents here in Bantayan Island,” said Prudence Foundation executive director Marc Fancy. 

PruVolunteers visit the site where 64 disaster-resilient houses have been turned over to the first batch of home partners in September 2015.  

“Prudence Foundation has a long-term and heartfelt commitment to support Asian communities, and nothing is more fulfilling for us than to help and see people stand firm again after an adversity.”

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“We are thankful to the local government unit, our partner NGO Habitat, and all volunteers across the region for lending their time and strength in contribution to this initiative. Indeed, we do well by doing good together,” he said.

Prudence Foundation trustee and Pru Life UK president and chief executive Antonio Manuel De Rosas noted the vital role of the private sector in contributing to nation building. “At the core of our business is our aspiration to make lives better, to help Filipinos get the protection they need. The Regional PruVolunteer Program allows us to immerse in the community and truly be involved in the cause that we are advancing. For this, we are grateful, and we will only continue to be committed to making lives better for Filipinos, especially our brothers and sisters whose livelihoods were devastated by disasters such as Yolanda,” De Rosas said.

About 90 percent of the population of the island was affected by the super typhoon and while much work has been done there is still a need for housing support. In 2013, the foundation committed $2 million to support relief and long-term recovery effort in the affected areas. Through the Regional PruVolunteer Program, the team – which comprises life insurance and asset management employees from 12 markets including the Philippines (Pru Life UK), Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Cambodia – has completed three legs of building new houses together with the local community and international non-governmental organization Habitat for Humanity.

In September 2015, 64 of the 133 completed disaster-resilient homes – which can withstand magnitude 8 earthquakes and winds of up to 275 kilometers per hour – were turned over to the home partners. Prudence Foundation also provided sustainable livelihood through a contribution of 183 motorized boats with fishing nets and 140 pedicabs or cycle rickshaws.

The Regional PruVolunteer Program is an initiative by Prudence Foundation in partnership with local NGOs to help provide meaningful, sustainable, and long-term assistance in times of disaster. 

Hundreds of employee-volunteers have joined forces to help thousands recover from natural disasters in Asia. PruVolunteers have helped build schools in Sichuan, China after an earthquake that claimed close to 70,000 lives in 2008, rebuild homes and facilities in Padang, Indonesia following a magnitude 7.9 earthquake in 2009, clear debris and support children in Ishinomaki, Japan after the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami in 2011, and repair homes for the elderly in Mae Ai, Thailand in the wake of flash floods in 2012.

Based in Hong Kong, Prudence Foundation was established by regional headquarters PCA to consolidate its long-term commitment to serve Asian communities. 

Disaster preparedness and relief is one of the Prudence Foundation’s three key areas of focus along with education and children. It has partnered with Save the Children and Plan International on a series of disaster preparedness and relief programs in Asia, including in the Philippines alongside the local business, Pru Life UK.

 

 

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