Govt to revise reconstruction plan
Govt to revise reconstruction plan
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Due to Monday's large earthquake near the Nias and Simeuleu
islands, the government will revise the blueprint it has drafted
for the post-tsunami reconstruction in Aceh and parts of North
Sumatra.
State Minister for National Development Planning Sri Mulyani
Indrawati said on Wednesday that her office would immediately
send a team to Nias within the week, to assess the damage from
the calamities.
"Apart from assessing the losses, the team will also identify
the funds needed for additional rehabilitation and
reconstruction, which will then be included in the revision of
the blueprint," she said.
Mulyani said could not make an estimation of the likely cost
of the damage. "From what I have been told, at least 12 districts
in Nias were severely damaged by the quake," she said.
She explained that a revision of the blueprint was still
possible because it had not yet been finalized.
"The presidential decree for the blueprint has not been signed
and issued yet, so the Nias area is still open for revision," she
said.
Following the end of the emergency response and rehabilitation
period in Aceh, the government drafted a blueprint for the
ensuing reconstruction period. It presented the blueprint to the
Acehnese people last Saturday, opening it up for any suggestions.
The reconstruction period is expected to start in April and to
be completed in the next five years, requiring funds of up to Rp
41.4 trillion (US$4.35 billion).
An earthquake measuring 8.7 on the Richter scale hit Nias and
Simeuleu islands late on Monday, only 320 kilometers away from
the epicenter of last year's 9.0-magnitude tsunami-generating
earthquake.
The quake, while it did not create a tsunami, damaged
infrastructure on both islands and is estimated to have claimed
about 1,000 lives.
Mulyani said the government had received extra offers of aid
for the Nias quake from several foreign countries, including the
U.S., Australia, Germany and Japan.
"Japan, for example, has discussed with us several emergency
relief activities they would like to carry out," she said. "Many
countries have also offered their aid through the United Nations
agencies."