Cologne/Cedro de Villa. One year after the severe earthquake in Peru, the rehabilitation measures are still in full process. "Together with Malteser International and many members of Malteser Peru and the Peruvian Association of the Order of Malta, we have reconstructed the houses of 92 families in the two villages of Cedro de Villa and Nuevo Hulacará in a short time", Monsignore Helmut Zielinski, founder of Malteser Peru, says. In the beginning, volun-teers also collected cloths and food and distributed the goods to the survivors. Two community kitchens were established for the affected population in the two almost completely destroyed villages.

After the acute emergency relief has now successfully come to an end, the sustainable development is the central focus of the work. Malteser International is conducting trainings for disaster preparedness and therewith supporting the capacity building within Malteser Peru. Another focus of the rehabilitation measures lies on income generating measures. Malteser Peru has therefore opened a community bakery that does not only produce bread but also offers new jobs for people who lost their jobs due to the earthquake. A successful project - even though some problems now affect the important work: "Unfortunately, the worldwide food crisis has also hit Peru. The prices for wheat and flour have increased up to a point where many people can not afford to buy bread anymore. We therefore still depend on support from the outside," Zielinski explains.

The earthquake that hit the provinces of Chincha and Canete south of Lima on 15 August 2007 had strength of 7.9 on the Richter scale. More than 500 people died, 60,000 houses were destroyed and up to 300,000 people became homeless.

Attention editorials! Sid Johann Peruvemba, Vice Secretary General of Malteser International, is available for interviews. Please contact: ++49 / 221 / 98 22 213.

For the rehabilitation measures after the earthquake in Peru, Malteser International still is in urgent need of donations:

Donation Account 120 120 120 Bank für Sozialwirtschaft, Wörthstr. 15 - 17, D-50668 Köln Sort Code : 370 205 00 IBAN : DE49 3702 0500 0001 0258 01 BIC: BFSWDE33XXX Reference : "Peru"

Malteser International is the worldwide relief agency of the Sovereign Order of Malta for hu-manitarian aid. The organisation provides aid in about 200 projects in more than 20 countries without distinction of religion, race or political persuasion. Christian values and the humanitarian principles of impartiality and independence are the foundation of its work. For further information: www.malteser-international.org and www.orderofmalta.org