City workers ask WB to remember the jobless

City workers ask WB to remember the jobless

JAKARTA (JP): Hundreds of blue-collar workers, most of whom
have lost their jobs during the financial crisis, urged visiting
World Bank president James Wolfensohn yesterday to keep
sponsoring labor-intensive projects.

And local women asked Wolfensohn, who toured a slum area and
one of the bank-sponsored projects in Kalibaru, North Jakarta
yesterday afternoon, to give them more opportunities to
participate.

Antara reported that the residents made their appeal in
response to Wolfensohn's questions about the program, which is
intended to alleviate the burden of unemployment on the city.

According to the residents, the projects have helped their
families stay afloat during the economic turmoil.

Surrounded by a crowd of foreign and local journalists and
camera crews, Wolfensohn visited a canal cleaning project -- one
of the 18 labor-intensive operations funded by the World Bank in
North Jakarta and expected to run from January until March.

About 220 people each receive Rp 7,500 per day for five hours
of dredging mud out of the dirty canal at the site Wolfensohn
visited.

"We normally work from eight to one, but I don't know why
we're still here now," a bemused worker, Abdulhayat, told
reporters.

None of the workers questioned at the site had heard of the
World Bank, but they had been told Wolfensohn was the man who
funded their meager existences.

"I was unemployed after losing my job at a construction
project and I am thankful to the government for allowing me to
take part in this project," one worker told Wolfensohn.

A middle-aged woman told reporters with glee that her son was
spending his free time working on the project.

"One of my two sons, Novianto, 17, has been working on the
project for four days, that is since the school holidays, but
once school resumes he will not work anymore," she said.

Before leaving, the World Bank chief walked through the muddy
alley of a nearby slum without making a formal statement.

"It is good that he (Wolfensohn) sees real poverty," a well-
heeled Indonesian official traveling with the delegation and
sporting an expensive-looking suit, said.

"As for me, I am used to this."

A World Bank press release issued prior to the visit said that
the organization and the Asian Development Bank had agreed with
the government on a series of loan amendments worth US$150
million to minimize the social impact and decrease government
funding requirements in several projects.

"Agreements were reached to both reduce requirements for
government of Indonesia matching funds and to authorize a
nationwide program of emergency, labor-intensive work to provide
employment for workers impacted by the financial crisis," the
statement said.

During the tour, Wolfensohn was accompanied by World Bank
representative for Indonesia Dennis De Tray, Asian Development
Bank representative for Indonesia TC Patterson, and a number of
city officials.

Wolfensohn and his team are in Indonesia to consult with
government officials, bankers, members of the business community
and other prominent figures regarding the World Bank's support of
structural adjustment reforms recently agreed to by the
Indonesian government and the International Monetary Fund.

Most of the people who have joined the labor program said they
had lost their jobs due to the economic crisis.

Participants in the Kalibaru project are aged between 13 and
55.

One of the workers, Djamal, 17, said he joined the program
because his father was no longer able to pay for his school fees.

"I've just completed junior high ... but a few weeks ago my
mom passed away and my dad lost his job. My dad said he can't
support me anymore ... so I have to help him earn some money for
my two younger brothers," he said.

Hardship had also prompted Askariah, a mother of six, to
participate.

"I'm glad to join this program ... because my husband was
fired from his job as a construction worker. I have nothing to do
at home. So, no matter how little I get from this project it's
better than nothing."

She had been forced to close down her kiosk because she could
no longer afford to buy the foodstuffs she needed. (edt/bsr)