Innovative sawmill program continues to get homes built in Papua New Guinea
The Fuller Center for Housing’s operation in Papua New Guinea is among the most unique of our international partnerships. Our team in the province of New Ireland, specifically in rural areas around the town of Kavieng, serves an area known for its biodiversity, wide-ranging cultures and languages, and also for its remoteness.
Because of that remoteness, however, many families struggle to acquire and maintain basic necessities, and having a simple, decent home is a dream for many who live in poverty housing conditions that offer little protection from the elements and pests.
Yet, our team in PNG keeps building homes and fulfilling dreams thanks to an innovative portable sawmill project — a sawmill funded by Fuller Center supporters.
The rural families contribute timber that is milled for their own homes and for those of more “urban” families. (Kavieng has a population of about 20,000, so “urban” is a relative term.) The value of that wood goes toward homeowner partner families’ repayment requirement.
The families also are required to participate in an aggressive and effective replanting program so that home construction does not exacerbate deforestation caused by multiple other issues. It also keeps the home-building program sustainable from both an environmental and a practical standpoint.
Martin Petrus is the passionate leader of our operations in Papua New Guinea. He was trained in international house building by veteran Global Builders Bob and Leslie Bell, who have visited more than 75 countries in their service of others. The Bells led the very first Fuller Center Global Builders trip to Papua New Guinea in 2017 before the sawmill was funded and when construction was even more complicated. However, they noted that PNG boasted something extremely important to the success of an international project — a great leader, and a leader who reminded them of someone notable.
“Martin is an intense person in that he is so committed to his community as a whole,” Leslie said. “He is going to make this a community that thrives. He’s very Christian, very compassionate, and he has a way of motivating other people in the community. He’s not a preacher, but he is like a New Guinea version of Millard Fuller. He doesn’t take no for an answer, and he doesn’t think anything is impossible.”
The seeds planted by leaders like Petrus, the Bells, Global Builders volunteers and supporters from the United States continue to pay off, and the sawmill continues to provide the precious lumber for home-building. Petrus recently shared photos of their two most recently completed homes for the Kessie and Warpin families, as well as three homes under construction for the Gamsa, Opnai and Tito families, homes that are scheduled to be completed by November of this year. (The local team considers a home “under construction” as soon as the first tree is felled to make its lumber.) You can see those photos in the gallery below:
We'd love to hear your comments!