World Bank To Provide $1Bln To Disaster-Hit Indonesia For Relief Efforts, Reconstruction

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th October, 2018) The World Bank has decided to allocate $1 billion to the Indonesian government to help their relief efforts and reconstruction works on the earthquake-hit islands of Sulawesi and Lombok and help to improve their preparedness for disasters in the future, World Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva said on Sunday.

Lombok was hit by two powerful earthquakes, magnitude 6.9 and 7.0, in August. Over 550 people have been killed as a result of the disaster. A more powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake was registered off Sulawesi island in late September. The earthquake triggered several tremors and a tsunami that struck the city of Palu and Donggala area, with the death toll exceeding 2,000 people.

"The Government's immediate relief efforts are robust and impressive.

As we enter the reconstruction phase we are making up to $1 billion of comprehensive support available for Indonesia. The best memorial to those who lost their lives is build back better," Georgieva was quoted as saying by the World Bank's official website.

The organization said in a statement that the funds could be used to provide with aid the poorest 150,000 families that have been affected by the disasters. The financial aid may also be used to rebuild the infrastructure and crucial public facilities, the statement added.

According to the World Bank's assessment, the physical damage from the tsunami that hit Sulawesi island stands at $531 million.