Nias to begin reconstruction work

Nias to begin reconstruction work

Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan

The North Sumatra provincial government is planning to start the
reconstruction of highways and bridges on quake-devastated Nias
island in August this year. A senior government official has said
that road and bridge reconstruction would cost the provincial
government about Rp 467 billion (US$49 million).

"The money will come both from the central government and
North Sumatra provincial government," said Roslila, the director
of the provincial administration's Highways Office.

The central government provided Rp 50 billion in cash to the
provincial government a few days after a monster earthquake
rocked the island on March 28 in order to help reconstruction and
rehabilitation work in the area. And, it might disburse more cash
in the near future, said Roslila.

The reconstruction work is badly needed as the length of
damaged roads and bridges extends to some hundreds of kilometers.

Tender will be held for the reconstruction projects between
June and July, and the winners will be announced publicly.

Meanwhile, R.E. Nainggolan, the director of the Information
and Communications Office at the North Sumatra provincial
administration, said that the situation on the devastated island
had still not returned to normal, and ruined buildings and debris
were to be found all over the island.

Currently, locals, helped by the United Nations Development
Program (UNDP) and Elsaka, a non-governmental organization from
North Sumatra, are helping to clean up the debris.

"The UNDP and Elsaka have estimated that the cleanup will have
been completed in two months time," said Nainggolan.

Nainggolan said that there were 103 volunteers still working
on Nias. They are engaged in various forms of relief work and had
committed themselves to staying on the island for between one and
two years.

Regarding the reconstruction of homes and offices, Nainggolan
said the total cost would be in the region of Rp 4 trillion. The
provincial government has already submitted a funding proposal to
the central government and the reconstruction work would start
soon after this had been approved.

The massive earthquake on Nias island, which measured 8.7 on
the Richter scale, killed hundreds of people and left thousands
of others injured.