BRR says pace of rebuilding picking up<\/p>\n
Hera Diani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Despite a slow start, progress has been made in tsunami-ravaged
\nAceh, with the pace of reconstruction picking up. The 65,000
\npeople still living in tents should be residing in decent housing
\nby the end of 2006, officials said on Thursday.<\/p>\n
The head of the Aceh and Nias Reconstruction and
\nRehabilitation Agency (BRR), Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, said that
\nsome 16,200 new homes had been constructed so far and 13,200 are
\nunder construction, out of the 110,000 needed.<\/p>\n
\"The reconstruction effort is now running at an increasingly
\nfast pace. We've built 5,000 houses per month since October. But
\n65,000 people still live in tents, so yes, we're still slow,\" he
\ntold a news conference as the agency released its one-year
\nprogress report.<\/p>\n
Kuntoro said the main priority for next year was to provide
\ndecent shelter for all the displaced tsunami survivors.<\/p>\n
While permanent homes for all those displaced would take more
\ntime, 20,000 transitional houses -- with aluminum frames and
\nwooden floors -- will have been erected by early 2006.<\/p>\n
The progress report shows the post-tsunami recovery efforts 12
\nmonths after an 800-kilometer band of Aceh coastline was
\ndevastated by the Dec. 26 disaster, leaving some 230,000 people
\nkilled or missing.<\/p>\n
BRR, a ministry-level body set up in April to coordinate
\nrebuilding, acknowledged that the government had been sluggish in
\nformulating a response strategy.<\/p>\n
More than 65,000 people were still living in tents, while some
\n50,000 others were still in temporary barracks, the report said.
\nAround half a million people were initially displaced by the
\ntsunami, but many have moved to stay with relatives.<\/p>\n
The agency said 235 kilometers of 3,000 kilometers of damaged
\nroads had so far been rebuilt, 335 of 2,000 damaged schools had
\nbeen rebuilt or were under construction, and 13,000 of 60,000
\nhectares of agricultural land had been restored.<\/p>\n
Funding has not been a problem for Aceh and Nias, as hundreds
\nof international and local charities have pledged help. One year
\nafter the tsunami, US$4.4 billion has already been allocated to
\nover 1,000 projects.<\/p>\n
Currently, $775 million of the funds had already been spent,
\nwith the largest share coming from NGOs and donor countries.
\nMonthly disbursements will have increased to about $150 million
\nby the end of this year and will likely rise to $200 million per
\nmonth during 2006.<\/p>\n
It is expected that the Indonesian government, donors and NGOs
\nwill ultimately contribute between $8 billion to $10 billion to
\nrebuild Aceh and Nias through to 2009.<\/p>\n
There are many sectors, however, with insufficient funding,
\nsuch as communications, energy, transport and environment.<\/p>\n
Education and health services are recovering fast, but lagging
\nin the west coast, the report said.<\/p>\n
Restoring livelihoods after losses of some US$1.2 billion in
\nthe fishing, farming and manufacturing sectors has been another
\nmajor challenge, with the construction boom providing many jobs
\nthat will not be sustainable in the long run.<\/p>\n
Fishermen are meanwhile likely to need fresh assistance.<\/p>\n
The report also said 18,000 of the damaged 80,000 hectares of
\nagricultural land and ponds had been restored, 3,122 of the
\nneeded 4,717 fishing boats had been supplied, and 40,000 of
\n60,000 farmers had returned to their land.<\/p>\n
However, most of the boats were not expected to last beyond 18
\nmonths due to their poor design and substandard materials.<\/p>\n
As the reconstruction moves into its second year, the BRR
\ncalled for better coordination among stakeholders.<\/p>\n
\"It is time to get beyond sentiments of 'my project, or yours'
\nand recognize the need for active coordination,\" the report said.<\/p>\n
More than 400 local and international charities are operating
\nin Aceh and the BRR has threatened to \"name and shame\" those who
\nfail to deliver on their pledges.<\/p>",
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