Jimmy Carter launches China housing campaign
Former US president Jimmy Carter travelled to southwestern China Thursday to launch a campaign that aimed to provide 10,000 poor families with affordable housing, a humanitarian group said.
The 85-year-old, accompanied by his wife Rosalynn, launched the five-year project in Sichuan province's Qionglai city as part of wider campaign that would span five nations, the US-based Habitat for Humanity said.
Carter is currently on the China-leg of a six-day event to build and repair 166 homes in Thailand, Vietnam, China, Cambodia and Laos, along with nearly 3,000 volunteers from around the world.
"My wife and I are very excited to join the volunteers today in our annual build," Carter was quoted as saying in a statement emailed to AFP.
"We?re especially excited to announce today the launch of a five-year campaign which will provide 10,000 families in China and a total of 50,000 families across five countries with affordable housing."
The Carters have devoted one week annually for the past 25 years to the Habitat for Humanity projects to help low-income people in the United States and abroad build and own their own homes.
Carter, who lost his bid for re-election in 1980, has also devoted his post-presidency to mediating conflicts and promoting human rights and democracy, an effort that won him the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002.
AFP
