Malaysia to help RI in rebuilding Aceh

Malaysia to help RI in rebuilding Aceh

Malaysia will send a team to Indonesia's tsunami ravaged city of Banda Aceh next week to help prepare a master plan to rebuild the area, a top government official said on Thursday.

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak will head a team of town planners and officials from Malaysia's public works ministry for Monday's visit to assess the destruction caused by the Dec. 26 earthquake and tsunami.

Najib said they will work with Indonesian authorities in mapping out a master plan for the reconstruction of Banda Aceh, the provincial capital of Aceh.

The disaster killed more than 110,000 people in Indonesia, almost all in Aceh. In addition, some 127,000 people are missing and most of them are presumed dead.

"Malaysia will be involved in formulating a master plan for a new Banda Aceh," Najib told reporters in Kuala Lumpur. "I will bring several government master planners to assess the situation in Banda Aceh."

Najib said sources for the billions of dollars (euros) needed to fund the reconstruction "will be decided later."

Najib said several Malaysian companies would likely participate in the reconstruction, if approved by Indonesia. He did not elaborate. --AP