Urgent Appeal for Donations – Inle Earthquake Recovery Campaign
19 April, 2025
We are calling for donations to support the Inle Region Earthquake Recovery Campaign. If you would like to donate, please message us via email: handtohandcharity.myanmar@gmail.com or contact Sue directly via her social media platforms. We also invite organizations that are interested in collaborating to join us.
Our beloved Inle Lake is among the many areas severely affected by the earthquake. As the emergency relief phase—providing essential food, clean water, and basic supplies—comes to an end, we are now entering the reconstruction phase. Many homes have been lost, and we must rebuild before the rainy season arrives, which poses additional danger as the lake will rise, threatening the safety of the locals.
For our first Inle Earthquake Recovery Campaign, we aim to rebuild 10 bamboo homes for a 4-member family, estimated to cost around 40 lakhs MMK each (approximately $1,000), totaling about 400 lakhs MMK.
Led by Ma Sue from Hand to Hand Charity (Bamboo Delight), this campaign focuses on reconstructing homes in villages around Inle. Our organization is a local community-based group in Inle, Nyaung Shwe. While there are also other groups helping rebuild homes, we will do what we can—village by village, one step at a time.
As a start, we will donate 10 bamboo homes in Nan Pan Yelal Village at Inle Lake, and we will expand support depending on the donations received.
All assessments and information were collected directly from the field by Ma Sue and the Hand to Hand Charity team. As most houses in the Inle region are built on water rather than land, the cost includes transportation of materials by boat, replanting bamboo, labor, and heavy tools—hence the higher cost.
According to conversations with local residents, their most urgent need is shelter, especially before the rainy season arrives. Many elderly people and young children are also at health risk due to the lack of shelter. When the rains come and the lake rises, there is a serious risk of flooding, and without homes, earthquake victims in Inle will face even more hardship.
From our field survey, locals have shared that they now have enough food and basic items to last for about two months. For healthcare, many government and non-government organizations—including Red Cross, doctors, nurses, private clinics, and mobile clinics—are actively providing support.
The most urgent need now is shelter. However, due to current circumstances, we will focus on rebuilding bamboo houses and huts first. Some homes have already been partially repaired by their owners, while others, especially those that were completely destroyed, need to be fully rebuilt from scratch. In some cases, traditional stilt houses that are now leaning or unsafe must be demolished entirely and rebuilt.
There are many challenges in the rebuilding process. First is the lack of sufficient funds, followed by a shortage of skilled labor and the need for machinery like chainsaws and block cutters. For homes that were completely destroyed, it may take at least 20 days just to clear the debris before rebuilding can even begin. Since these are houses on the lake, volunteering for clearance and reconstruction is not easy. The shortage of construction workers is also causing delays.
Despite these challenges, we are committed to supporting the needs and hopes of local people with the help of generous donors like you.
With warm regards,
Sue
Hand to Hand Charity Myanmar (Bamboo Delight)