USAID-funded trainers guide Pakistani military engineers in earthquake resistant design

Army engineers listen intently to a presentation on safe construction techniques in Shinkiari, NWFP. Tapped by their government to conduct damage assessments for the Oct. 8 earthquake, the Pakistani military is building expertise on earthquake resistant techniques and assessment practices.

"We're proud to help a great Pakistan military take the lead."

-- U.S. President George W. Bush, speaking about earth-quake reconstruction during his March visit to Pakistan

The 7.6-magnitude earthquake that shook northern Pakistan on Oct. 8 wrought large-scale destruction, killing more than 73,000 people and damaging 84 percent of houses across three union councils in Kashmir and 51 percent of houses across five union councils in the North West Frontier Province. More than 400,000 homes were damaged or destroyed.

To help the government of Pakistan promote earthquake-resistant reconstruction, USAID funded the National Society for Earthquake Technology-Nepal to train local NGOs, engineers, masons and carpenters in safe building practices and to prepare public education materials. NSET is also sharing expertise with Pakistani army engineers as they embark on assessing earthquake damage to homes. The military's assessments will determine the level of government compensation for families and help them guide residents to build stronger houses than before. Over a series of three-day workshops held simultaneously in Shinkiari in NWFP and Muzaffarabad in Kashmir, 600 military engineers learn the principles of safe construction and conduct fieldwork to identify unsafe locations, distance from fault lines, and reparable structural damage. Military engineers also learn to categorize degrees of damage to load-bearing walls, corners, beams and roofs. The training is run by USAID partner NSET, UN-Habitat and Emergency Architects. At the first Shinkiari workshop, 81 military engineers who had spent months after the earthquake building emergency shelters and clearing landslides for the delivery of relief supplies now filled a school auditorium to prepare for their part in reconstruction.

Waqas Hanif, project manager for rural housing reconstruction for the government's Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority, said the military is well-placed to conduct assessments because of its technical expertise and ability to mobilize quickly. "It is a great service that the Pakistan military is doing for the government," Hanif said. USAID support for training the Pakistani military is in keeping with the wider policy articulated by U.S. President George W. Bush during his recent visit to Pakistan. "We're proud to help a great Pakistan military take the lead," Bush said. "We're proud to stand with the NGOs and those who deliver compassion as this country rebuilds. We stand by our commitment, our pledge of one-half billion dollars for recovery and reconstruction."