Housing czar Eduardo del Rosario, as Task Force Bangon Marawi chief, on Thursday spearheaded the first turnover of permanent shelters to Marawi City’s internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Lanao del Sur.
He witnessed the distribution of permanent house ownership certificates from the United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN-Habitat) to 109 IDP families during the inauguration of the Marawi resettlement site and permanent houses (phase 1) in Barangay West Dulay.
Erected on a 100-square-meter lot, each two-story house has a floor area of 42 square meters and is equipped with toilet and bathroom, a kitchen, basic lighting, and outlets, as well as a sewage piping system. The subdivision-like resettlement has electric and water supplies, Del Rosario said.
He said the activity symbolizes the government’s full commitment in helping those affected by the siege get back on their feet in partnership with UN-Habitat, along with the Social Housing Finance Corp. (SHFC) and the TFBM, as well as its implementing agencies.
“The government, through the TFBM, remains steadfast in helping our Maranao brothers and sisters affected by the 2017 siege rebuild their lives in coordination with the implementing agencies and partner-organizations like UN-Habitat,” Del Rosario said.
“Having a house that the IDPs can now call their own is part of our commitment in ensuring Marawi’s overall rehabilitation,” he noted.
The IDP families were from various Marawi villages that were severely affected by the five-month siege laid by Daesh-inspired terrorists that began in May 2017.
They were the first batch of Marawi IDPs to be entitled with permanent shelters, while over 3,000 permanent shelters are currently in various phases of construction in the city.
Del Rosario is on his second visit to Marawi this year, aimed at closely monitoring the progress of the city’s rehabilitation.
Last month, Del Rosario conducted similar inspections at various infrastructure projects inside Marawi’s most affected area.
He reiterated that the city’s rebuilding process remains on track, and that they are within schedule of the December 2021 timeline on completion of projects.