Jamsostek offers funds for low cost houses
Jamsostek offers funds for low cost houses
JAKARTA (JP): PT Jamsostek will inject Rp 1 trillion
(US$281.69 million) into the cash strapped state-owned PT Bank
Tabungan Negara (BTN) to help finance the construction of 80,000
low cost houses.
Minister of Manpower Abdul Latief said President Soeharto
supported the decision which would help improve BTN's liquidity.
"With this fresh money, the state minister of public housing
can help small and middle scale housing developers," Latief said
after meeting with Soeharto at the Bina Graha presidential office
yesterday.
State Minister of Public Housing Akbar Tandjung said last week
that half of the 2,400 housing developers in Indonesia had
stopped activities due to skyrocketing lending rates caused by
the currency crisis.
The rupiah has dropped about 35 percent against the U.S.
dollar since July.
Most small and middle scale developers depend heavily on bank
loans, especially from BTN, which specializes in financing low
cost housing.
Tandjung said the planned construction of 500,000 low cost
houses, in the current Sixth Five-year National Development Plan
which began in 1994, may not be achieved if the dire monetary
situation persists.
"The situation is so severe that developers can not pay their
contractors, and consequently contractors can not pay their
workers," Tandjung said.
PT Jamsostek, established in 1977, manages a social security
program in the fields of savings, occupational accidents, health
care and pension funds, for more than 11 million workers in the
country.
The amount of funds collected from workers since 1993 has
reached Rp 6 trillion.
In a related development, PT Jamsostek signed yesterday a
memorandum of understanding with Lend Lease Group, an Australian
financial and property services company, to acquire assistance in
the management of the social security program.
The memorandum of understanding was signed by PT Jamsostek's
president Abdillah Nusi and general manager of Lend Lease
Financial Services Asia Leigh Watson.
The signing ceremony was witnessed by Minister of Manpower
Abdul Latief and Australian Ambassador to Indonesia John
McCarthy.
Under the agreement, Lend Lease will provide business
consultations to help PT Jamsostek address the challenges
associated with its rapid growth and support the company in
working toward better management practice.
"In the next 12 months, this will involve specific support in
the areas of staff training and skills development, changes in
culture and operational structure, information technology,
program development and customer services," said Abdillah Nusi.
Separately Akbar Tandjung also signed an MOU with Minister for
Public Works and Housing of the Government of Queensland,
Australia, David Watson, on strategic development and management
of Housing.
Tandjung said the joint cooperation would help closer
cooperation between the two countries in human settlement and
housing.
"We choose Queensland, because it had already progressed much
in housing management," Tandjung said.
Watson also hopes the cooperation heighten relations.
"We have some expertise to share, and we hope that in sharing
we will be able to help improve the process of housing in
Indonesia," he said. (09/prb/rms)