Rebuild Infrastructure Better
Here USAID's focus is on reconstructing roads, bridges, harbors, training centers, schools, clinics, markets and other important systems. In carrying out key infrastructure projects in the communities hit hardest by the tsunami, USAID's goal is to make them stronger, better and resistant to future disasters. Below are highlights of USAID's work in this area.
07/20/05
U. S. and Indonesia sign agreement for US$400
million for relief and reconstruction
U. S. and Indonesia sign agreement for US$400
million for relief and reconstruction
The governments of the U.S. and Indonesia signed an
Agreement committing a total of US$400 million in
tsunami relief and reconstruction aid to support
immediate and long-term recovery in Indonesia.
In a ceremony at the Presidential Palace on July 7, 2005,
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and U.S.
Ambassador B. Lynn Pascoe highlighted the strong
partnership between Indonesia and the United States.
The programs supported under this agreement
include: reconstruction of the 240 kilometer Banda Aceh
to Meulaboh road; shelter; credit and grants to rebuild
local infrastructure; activities to help restore communities
and drive economic rejuvenation; teacher training and
vocational education; and technical support aimed at
critical local government services and local capabilities.
Since December 2004, the U.S. government has
provided $68.1 million in emergency food, supplies,
shelter, water and sanitation, health, and other support
for affected communities in Aceh and North Sumatra.
Private contributions toward the relief effort are estimated
at well over one billion US dollars.
07/20/05 
Clean up act builds good will
Infrastructure improvements in temporary settlements
On July 12, USAID provided an additional $4.2 million to
three NGOs working along the southern coast of India.
These NGOs will remain engaged with affected families in
more than 60 temporary settlements. Working with the
affected families, often through cash-for-work programs,
these NGOs will carry out shelter and community
improvements in anticipation of the heavy rains expected in
October. Improvements will include setting up systems for
water purification and treatment, organizing solid waste
management programs, repairing walls and roofs of
individual units, and providing drainage in and around the
shelters. The NGOs will also continue to provide water and
sanitation support, and hygiene education. Shelter
improvement activities will benefit more than 10,000
families.
05/25/05 Contractors "marry up" to bid for signature infrastructure
Potential bidders toured project sites for the signature infrastructure package to be funded by the supplemental appropriation. Some of the teams showed interest in bidding for the contract, while others are seeking to "marry up" with larger firms, as one pre-bid conference participant put it, to work as subcontractors for a larger firm. Three Sri Lankan teams were in attendance. The group sent representatives to inspect fishing harbors and vocational training centers in the south and the Arugam Bay Bridge in the east. The final RFP will
be released May 31.
05/11/05 Pre-bid conference lays groundwork for
quick start of projects
Nearly 100 potential bidders and interested
parties from all over the world arrived in
Colombo to attend the pre-bid conference for
USAID's Signature Infrastructure portfolio set
for May 10. The projects include construction
of a 573-meter bridge, rehabilitation of three
fishing ports, and construction or rehabilitation
of up to 14 vocational training centers. The
projects are expected to have a larger
development impact by involving local
communities in decision making.
05/11/05 Reconstruction of 80 km of Banda Aceh to
Meulaboh road
On May 8th, Secretary Zoellick announced the signing
of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for U.S.
funding for the first phase of the Banda Aceh to
Meulaboh road, much of which was destroyed during
the December 2004 earthquake and tsunami. This
project will support the design and construction of
selected sections of the road and several bridges, to
reopen approximately 80 kilometers of road.
05/04/05 Radio news broadcasts fill post-tsunami “information void”
Nightly radio broadcasts of tsunami-related news, information and human interest stories, compiled and
produced by two USAID-funded mobile radio units traveling in the South and the East, began Monday
on the Sri Lankan National Broadcasting Corporation’s Sinhala and Tamil national services. The
broadcasts will continue on weeknights for two months under the pilot phase of the $182,000 project.
The project aims to build capacity of Sri Lankan radio journalists, as well as fill an information void
between affected communities and the officials responsible for providing them with relief and other
services.
Signature Infrastructure advances with education design team surveys
A vocational education design team arrived in Sri Lanka to design a signature infrastructure project.
The team visited prospective sites for up to14 vocational schools to evaluate the anticipated cost and
design of facilities to be built or rehabilitated. The team will also meet with key government engineers
and communities on the design of the projects.
04/27/05 Coastal management to take “ridge-to-reef”
approach
USG funding for a participatory coastal zone
management program will complement post-tsunami
signature infrastructure projects in Sri
Lanka. A USAID coastal resources specialist
is assisting USAID/Sri Lanka to design a
program that embeds the infrastructure
projects within a broader context of integrated
coastal management. The program will take
a holistic “ridge-to-reef” approach to local
development, incorporating local community
perspectives. The program will strengthen
local governance and community participation
while addressing water management, flooding,
erosion, and land use conflicts.
04/20/05 International pre-bid conference will accelerate signature infrastructure timetable
USAID has finalized plans for a Pre-Bid conference for all firms interested in bidding on USAID-funded signature infrastructure projects, including rebuilding the damaged Arugam Bay Bridge (photo). The conference will be held in Colombo on May 10 at the Taj Samudra Hotel. The meeting will enable potential bidders from all over the world, who may be new to USAID contracts, to interact directly with US and Sri Lankan Government officials to learn more about project plans and the contracting process. It will also provide firms with the opportunity to exchange information, which can lead to effective teaming arrangements. More information on the pre-bid conference can be found at: www.usaid.gov/in/WhatsNew/BGOpp.htm
Back to Top ^
|
