Building to live
The
Pedaling to Live program began four years ago in
Ozamis City on the island of Mindanao in the Philippines when drivers paid a
daily rental of one dollar a day to the Ozamiz City People’s Cooperative*. This initiative came from Columban Fr Oli
McCrossan who saw the value in the tricycle drivers supporting each other with
a structure like a cooperative.
The program enables drivers to take ownership of the tricycle when they have accumulated enough money to pay for the cost of the unit. So far over 50 drivers now own their tricycles. The success of Pedaling to Live prompted a meeting with the drivers about their lack of decent housing. The drivers and their families are living in the poorest areas of Ozamis City. Many are in crowded and unsanitary shanties; some are living with relatives in extremely cramped spaces.
After visiting the places where the drivers live, we bought a piece of land for forty low cost houses that will be built for our drivers and their families. At present the site is being developed. An access road is being constructed , electric posts are being installed and pipes are being laid for the water supply. The area will be fenced to secure the mini-community and provide an opportunity to do urban organic gardening and environment friendly livestock production, for example, chicken and duck raising. The site will implement an eco-friendly wast management scheme.
The houses will consist of two bedrooms, a sitting room, and a bathroom. The drivers will help in the actual construction of their houses. The estimated cost of each house is 100,000 pesos($1200). An agreement will be drawn up between the beneficiaries and the cooperative. Like the Pedaling to Live program it will be a rent-to-own agreement whereby a daily rental will be paid back and after accumulating the cost of the house in rent, ownership of the house will be duly transferred to the beneficiary.
“The success of our tricycle project has given us great encouragement and we believe we can succeed.” said Father Oli McCrossan. “We take this opportunity to thank Columban Mission and our benefactors and friends who have been so generous in helping the Pedaling to Live program from its small beginning until the present.”
With thanks,
Fr
Oliver McCrossan SSC has been a missionary in the Philippines since 1975.
* The housing project is under the management of Ozamis City People’s Cooperative. This cooperative began in 1967. At present there are 5,000 members. They come from the poorest section of the community: market vendors, ordinary wage earners, small business people and youth.
