Unicef chief visits Bandung

BANDUNG: Unicef executive director Carol Bellamy said Saturday an environmental program that the world body sponsors in West Java could be an exemplary model to Asian, African and South American countries.

The program, called Sarasa, aims at preserving the environment and keeping the community healthy. It builds public toilets, repairs gutters and household waste dumps, and renovates makeshift houses.

The program works with the support of students of local Islamic boarding schools, religious leaders and local communities.

Bellamy's appreciation was conveyed by Unicef's Jakarta representative Stephen J. Woodhouse after her visit to the Sarasa III project, where West Java Governor R. Nuriana was present.

The governor said the Sarasa III program will last until Nov. 30. He said the Sarasa programs have so far built 19,602 public toilets, renovated 19,776 makeshift houses, as well as provided about 60,000 elementary school students with medicines. (21/08)