Interested parties can help with constructions for Haiti at CTU

Prague – A new educational program for enthusiasts of technology and building design is offered by the Center for International Development Projects at the Czech Technical University in Prague (CTU). Participants will learn in the program how to design buildings for climate- and culturally diverse regions. This year's inaugural edition will focus on assisting building projects in one of the world's poorest countries, the Caribbean nation of Haiti. The event will take place online from December 4 to 6. The CTU spokesperson, Andrea Vondráková, informed about this.

According to her, both university students and other interested parties in technology, including seniors, can participate in the program. An application is available on the website of the Center for International Development Projects. Participants do not necessarily need to have technical knowledge.

For this year, the organizers have chosen to address the project of the organization Praga-Haiti. Participants in the program will first familiarize themselves with the basics of building design in climate- and culturally different countries. They will then deal with the design of buildings for the area of Haiti, where there is limited availability of construction materials, and the design of facilities for a well-drilling project in this poor country.

The drilling of wells for drinking water in Haiti is the goal of the development project Praga-Haiti, whose representatives are gradually trying to pass on the knowledge of Czech technicians to Haitians. "A major task for the successful development of the project is to build a self-sustaining base in Haiti that will provide workers not only with shelter but also a workshop for repairing drilling equipment, an office for other development organizations in the area, and space for a small vocational school," said the architect of Praga-Haiti, Petr Vacek. According to him, participants of the educational program will be able to help with this.

Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. In January 2010, it was struck by a 7.2 magnitude earthquake, which was according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) the sixth deadliest in history. 217,000 people died, and around 300,000 others were injured. Approximately 250,000 residential houses and 30,000 commercial buildings were destroyed or severely damaged. About two million people, or a fifth of the population, lost their homes. Following the earthquake, an outbreak of cholera occurred on the island, which became the worst cholera epidemic in modern history – claiming approximately 10,000 lives in Haiti.

The Center for International Development Projects at CTU is a platform of experts from various fields to support education and collaboration in international projects aimed at helping the development of poor countries. Its main goal is to improve the projects of Czech organizations abroad. It also organizes lectures on the technical aspects of humanitarian projects and a summer school. Currently, it also offers online lectures for high schools.