ADB to host confab to help rehabilitate 4 tsunami-hit nations

Asian Economic News, Feb 14, 2005

MANILA, Feb. 8 Kyodo

The Asian Development Bank will host a international conference next month to map out a system of rehabilitating four countries hit hard by the Dec. 26 tsunami, ADB Chairman Haruhiko Kuroda said Tuesday.

The conference intended to help Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and the Maldives will be held at the ADB's Manila headquarters on March 18, Kuroda said.

Representatives of governments and multilateral organizations will participate in the conference, he said.

''The meeting will take stock of recovery achievements and pledges of support, and seek to reach a common understanding of the major considerations in delivering effective rehabilitation and reconstruction programs over the next four to five years,'' Kuroda said.

''The major objective is to facilitate coordination among bilateral and multilateral donors with respect to rehabilitation and construction for the four severely-affected countries,'' he said.

Kuroda said coordination among those who are helping the tsunami-affected countries ''will be a crucial component of success'' when the response to the tragedy shifts from the relief phase to the rehabilitation and reconstruction phase.

''The magnitude of the tsunami disaster demands that the rebuilding process is rapid, efficient and meets the critical needs of affected communities,'' he said.

''It is critical that the international community maintains the significant momentum of the relief effort as longer-term work on restoring livelihoods, rehabilitating communities, restoring social services and rebuilding infrastructure moves into high gear.''

To guide participants, the conference will rely on the fresh assessment of specific rehabilitation needs of the four countries by the ADB, the World Bank and other multilateral organizations, which will flesh out, among other things, sectors and industries that need to be prioritized in the rehabilitation process.

The ADB has identified $600 million in readily available funds and another $175 million in reprogrammed funding for the four countries.

ADB, in an impact assessment released last month, said the tsunami disaster may drive about 2 million more people into poverty in India, Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Indonesia.

The same study said the economic impact will be felt severely at the local and community levels, dragging hundreds of thousands of already poor people into deeper poverty.