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ADB AND Muslim Aid, a United Kingdom-based civil society organization commenced a joint $4.9 million housing program with the stone-laying ceremony in Meunassah Bueng village in the Pidie District, where 222 new houses will be built.

“This program is a unique one under which ADB is providing the funds for Muslim Aid to build 686 new houses across Biruen, Pidie, Aceh Utara, and Lhokseumawe,” said Pieter Smidt, Head of ADB’s Extended Mission in Sumatera, during the ground-breaking ceremony. “Also, our presence in Meunassah Bueng demonstrates ADB’s continued commitment to reach out to the tsunami victims in the more remote areas of Aceh province.”

ADB is providing $72.5 million to rehabilitate and reconstruct houses and community infrastructure in Aceh and Nias following the 2004 Tsunami and March 2005 earthquake.

The assistance is part of a $291 million ADB grant to the Government of Indonesia that is helping to rebuild the areas devastated by the earthquake and tsunami disasters.

Through the “on-budget” program implemented by BRR, the Aceh and Nias Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency of the Government of Indonesia, ADB has completed 900 houses while another 1,360 units are under construction. Construction of another 500 new houses will start construction soon in Nias.

Under its “off-budget” program implemented by UN-HABITAT and four NGOs, including Muslim Aid, German Agro Action, Help eV, and Cordaid, ADB is financing the construction of about 3,000 new houses, and the rehabilitation of about 1,050 houses across Aceh and Nias including Simeulue.

“Community consultation during project preparation and implementation is an essential element of the ADB financed housing program. “The finished structure”, according to ADB’s Housing and Spatial Planning Advisor, Rehan Kausar, “should reflect the desires of the people. Moreover, the houses should be habitable and the program therefore provides essential community infrastructure including much needed water and sanitation facilities”. He further elaborated that land titling and gender promotion figure high within the housing program.

“While we are grateful that ADB has put its trust in Muslim Aid for the implementation of a quality housing program by providing us the funds, we on our part will leave no stone unturned to meet the standards mandated by ADB and BRR”, said Fadlullah Wilmot, Country Director for Muslim Aid in Indonesia.

ADB's multi-sector tsunami for Indonesia assistance package covers agriculture, fisheries, irrigation, micro and small enterprise development, housing, water and sanitation, health, education, transport, power, spatial planning and environmental management, and fiduciary oversight.

The $291 million ADB grant is financing the Earthquake and Tsunami Emergency Support Project (ETESP) to support disaster management, reconstruction and rehabilitation in affected areas of Aceh and North Sumatra. In addition, ADB has contributed a $10 million grant to the Multi-Donor Fund for Aceh and Nias.

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