Meetings with Elected Officials and NGOs

Today began the first leg of two days of meeting with elected officials and NGOs. Our morning meeting was with Juan De Dios Rojas, General Manager of BANHVI, which is the largest housing bank in Costa Rica that provides housing subsidies to needy families in the country. Mr. Rojas talked at length about the pressing issues facing his office in trying to provide adequate subsidies to help alleviate the problem of housing the influx of Nicaraguan immigrants. He reported that his agency has provided over $300,000 in subsidies to families through 19 authorized organizations. It impressed me that given the chronic nature of the problem, this is woefully insufficient. As we continue with our meetings, I will research that issue further. That being said, one in four families is receiving subsidies, and most of them are Nicaraguan immigrants. My general impression of Mr. Rojas was that of a polite efficient bureaucrat whose approach to the immigrant housing issue was more of bureaucratic exactitude and less objective out of the box thinking. Perhaps that’s unfair on my part as this is an issue that is highly complex and every bit as controversial.

Our luncheon meeting was with Jose Manuel Ulate, Mayor of Heredia, who was recently elected to his post. He was very passionate and opinionated about the issue of immigration and the strain it has put on housing and other services supported by the local and national government. He expressed a willingness to put the full force of his administration behind constructive solutions to the issue. He was very adamant however that the immigrants had to be deliberate in their attempt to lift themselves out of their predicament without depending on unfettered assistance from the government. His feeling was that the government’s subsidies were created an entitlement attitude in the immigrant population. He went on to say that continued unrestricted access would only make matters worse. Is this true? On some level perhaps, but the visit to the Precario or the slums showed a community that was organizing itself, subsisting with very little cash resources. What they didn’t have in financial assets they compensated with social capital, refusing to capitulate to the harsh reality of their existence.

I was one of a few privileged to meet the Second Vice President of Costa Rica, Luis Lieberman. It was certainly an honor to be able to meet such a high official. Habitat’s ability to access this level of power and influence is what makes the BuildLouder trips powerful and beneficial to the cause of creating affordable housing and alleviating poverty wherever its sites are located. Even though the Vice President’s portfolio was not housing, he was well versed on the issues that needed to be addressed. He was confident that with partnerships that the government was building, that they would be able to make some progress toward the issue. I advised the Vice President that Twin Cities Habitat had adopted Costa Rica as a tithing partner and has donated funds to the local Habitat affiliate as part of a four-year commitment. The Vice President is grateful to Habitat for its willingness to lend its support to their effort of creating decent housing in his country.

All in all a very busy yet informative day, I look forward to our meetings tomorrow.

Wesley Walker,
Team Member, Twin Cities Habitat Board Member