Indon expert on disaster rehabilitation arrives in PH

MANILA, Philippines—The Indonesian Minister who oversaw the rehabilitation efforts of Indonesia after the 2004 tsunami arrived in the country Friday morning to provide insights on how to manage rehabilitation efforts, a statement from the United Nations said.

The statement said Indonesian Senior Minister Kuntoro Mangkusubroto’s visit was requested by the National Risk Reduction and Management Council through the United Nations Development Program.

“I’m here to offer the government and the international community my experience as the coordinator of rehabilitation of Aceh,” said Mangkusubroto who led the efforts in the Indonesian region after the 2004 tsunami. “I look forward to sharing my expertise and contributing to designing an efficient recovery plan for the areas devastated by typhoon ‘Yolanda’ (international name Haiyan).”

Luiza Carvalho, UN Humanitarian and Resident Coordinator and UNDP’s representative in the Philippines, said that Mangkusubroto’s visit is to “build resilience against typhoons.”

“The aim of this significant visit by Dr. Kuntoro Mangkusubroto is to share ways to ensure that the recovery process in the Philippines will build resilience against future typhoons, lift people out of poverty    and manage natural resources responsibly,” Carvalho said.

Mangkusubroto was appointed as Director of the National Agency for Reconstruction and Rehabilitation for Aceh-Nias, or BRR Aceh-Nias after the 2004 tsunami killed almost 230,000 people.

His three-day visit to the country would include an executive meeting with selected Cabinet Secretaries and the international community involved in the recovery process and a technical workshop that would bring recovery managers from other post-disaster situations.

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