PRR Task Force Rehabilitates 97.8% of Places of Worship Post-Sumatra Disaster
The Task Force for Accelerating Rehabilitation and Reconstruction (PRR Task Force) is rehabilitating places of worship as part of post-disaster recovery in Sumatra. As of 9 April, the Ministry of Religious Affairs records that 1,558 out of 1,593 places of worship in three provinces have resumed operations.
Meanwhile, 35 other places of worship are still undergoing treatment due to severe damage up to being washed away. Of the total 918 affected places of worship in Aceh Province, 906 have been put back into use.
In North Sumatra (North Sumatra), 552 out of 571 places of worship are operational, while in West Sumatra (West Sumatra), 100 out of 104 places of worship have been refunctioned.
Head of the PRR Task Force, Muhammad Tito Karnavian, stated that the recovery of places of worship is a serious concern for the government because they play an important role in restoring the spirit and peace of the community post-disaster.
“These are the affected places of worship; this is the assignment to the Minister of Religious Affairs (Nasaruddin Umar) and the Minister of Public Works (Dody Hanggodo),” said Tito in Jakarta some time ago.
This physical rehabilitation is supported by the distribution of rehabilitation budgets for places of worship by the PRR Task Force. In Aceh, assistance for rehabilitating places of worship has been fully channelled with a total budget of Rp3.75 billion. In West Sumatra, assistance of Rp500 million has also been fully distributed.
The distribution of assistance budgets in North Sumatra is still in the process of completion, with a small portion of the budget yet to be channelled due to the relocation of buildings to safer locations.
This effort is strengthened by the recovery of the community’s spiritual life, especially in Aceh. President Prabowo Subianto previously provided cattle assistance for the meugang tradition in 19 regencies/cities in Aceh, both ahead of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr, with a total value of Rp145.5 billion.
“Mr President, in addition to providing Rp4 billion assistance at the beginning of each regency/city and province for unforeseen expenses, plus for Aceh there is meugang cattle, the amount (total) Rp145.5 billion for 19 regencies/cities,” said Tito.
The PRR Task Force also routinely distributes worship equipment assistance to the community as part of non-physical recovery. This step is expected to accelerate the recovery of religious activities, which is important for building community social resilience.