After participating in the ASEAN Leaders' Meeting on the Tsunami
Disaster, the President of the World Bank Group, Mr. James D.
Wolfensohn, visited the Sumatran province of Aceh on January 7,
2005, to see the damage from the devastating earthquake and tsunami
first-hand and to launch the planning for a rapid and comprehensive
recovery program.
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"The money is there, and the international community has shown its
tremendous support for the entire region," said Mr. Wolfensohn
speaking in Aceh today. "Now we need a fast and transparent way to
channel the billions of dollars pledged in Jakarta into the
hundreds of dollars for a poor fisherman in Aceh to rebuild his
boat… or for a community to rebuild its homes."
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In Aceh, Mr. Wolfensohn announced that the Government of Indonesia
and the World Bank have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
for reconstruction and rehabilitation activities in Aceh and North
Sumatra?? committing to projects aimed at rebuilding
communities and physical infrastructure through investments in
housing, health, education, roads, and important social
assets.?The program brings together more than US$300 million
in reconstruction funds through reallocation within existing
projects and new funds, nearly all in the form of concessional
loans (IDA) and grants.
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The projects expand the World Bank's support for the Government of
Indonesia's community-driven development program – where
communities make their own decisions about how assistance money is
spent and monitor the use of funds – to all villages and kabupaten
in Aceh.
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"The only way to begin the process of healing from this terrible
tragedy is to actively engage the people in decisions about their
own recovery and, through this participation, give them hope," said
Mr. Wolfensohn. "These projects put money directly into the hands
of people to determine their own needs and to start rebuilding
their lives and livelihoods."
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In Banda Aceh, Mr. Wolfensohn met with community facilitators from
Indonesia's Kecamatan Development Project, the world's largest
community-driven development program which already covers over 75
percent of the affected towns and villages in Aceh. He announced
that the project should be ready to start disbursing reconstruction
funds for initial clean-up operations by the end of the
month.
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"Reconstruction will take years," said Mr. Wolfensohn, "but the
process of healing must begin now.? As the Government's full
needs assessment and recovery planning gets underway, let's make
sure that we are using Indonesia's extensive community
participation networks to channel reconstruction aid quickly and
transparently."
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Three types of World Bank-assisted projects are being adapted to
support the Government's plans for reconstruction of Aceh and North
Sumatra:
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--Existing community development projects – Kecamatan Development
Project, Urban Poverty Project, Basic Education – which can use
networks of facilitators to mobilize communities for making
decisions about how to use and monitor reconstruction funds;
--A new project of support for poor and disadvantaged areas
designed to work in affected districts to rebuild health and
education facilities and to promote private sector investment in
reconstruction;
--Province-level road, urban infrastructure, water supply and
health projects will be adapted to respond to the findings from the
Government's needs assessment.
The three-pronged approach will enable the Government to move as
quickly as possible to restore critical infrastructure in affected
regions, helping the affected people gain access to drinking water,
power, and medical services.???
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Mr. Wolfensohn emphasized that the entire program is being designed
to ensure that the people have the opportunity to closely monitor
how reconstruction funds are spent in order to prevent corruption
and enhance governance as Aceh and North Sumatra are rebuilt. "Just
show the communities in the affected areas what money is coming in
and where it goes out," said Mr. Wolfensohn, "This kind of
transparency and citizen oversight is the best method to prevent
corruption."
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Mr. Wolfensohn will next travel to Sri Lanka and Maldives, to visit
the affected areas and discuss reconstruction priorities and their
funding with government officials and the affected people.
(China.org.cn January 11, 2005)