BAITUSSALAM, Indonesia 08 Apr 2005 - The brick-makers arrive at this demolished shoreline one by one, gazing intently at the Hiroshima-like destruction that extends for miles. But while their eyes see only wreckage, their minds are already hard at work plotting the trajectory of regeneration.
“You cannot see the houses now, but soon they’ll be there” says Zamzani, a 40-year-old businessman who will soon rebuild his brick-making business here. “I can easily make enough bricks to build ten homes a month.”
The International Rescue Committee will fund local brick makers in their vision to rebuild some of Aceh’s most devastated lands. Some 25 local facilities will be financed to the tune of $200,000 – all part of the IRC’s efforts to foster the regeneration of communities ravaged by December’s tsunami.
“Brick-making was responsible for nearly 50 percent of all local employment in this area,” says George Friou, field coordinator for the project. “By helping these people rebuild their factories, we are not only generating substantial employment opportunities we are furnishing the most basic tools for community redevelopment.”
Friou says that the market for the project is not only directed at individuals who will need building tools for their homes but also at businesses and government institutions, all of which are struggling to rebuild after the December disaster.
The construction of factory kilns and storage facilities will begin in the next few weeks and Friou says that the factories should be completed in two to three months.
“The beauty of this project is that the results will be immediate and palpable,” says Friou. “And the benefits of what are literally basic building blocks will far outlast even our presence in Aceh.”
