Advantages and Limitations of Community-based Post-disaster Housing Reconstruction Projects

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to discuss the advantages and limitations of the implementation of a community-based method in post-disaster housing reconstruction. Design/methodology/approach – The research was based on multiple case studies in the implementation of a Community-based Post-disaster Housing Reconstruction project (CPHRP) in Indonesia. Data was gathered by conducting semi-structured interviews and a questionnaire survey. Findings – The research reveals 22 advantages of a CPHRP. Four advantages can be categorised as highly significant. They are: create sense of ownership, fit to local culture/customs/wisdom, build beneficiaries’ confidence, and minimize corruption. There are some advantages that cannot be delivered if the housing reconstruction is conducted using a contractor-based approach. It was also found that psychological advantages are more dominant than the physical advantages. Despite its numerous advantages, CPHRP has limitations. Firstly, it requires a long pre-construction process, and secondly, there is a limitation with regard to the capacity of implementer and there are limitations within the community itself. Originality/value – This paper is very specific as it attempts to discover the advantages and limitations of a CPHR

Cities and Calamities: Learning from Post-Disaster Response in Indonesia

The article examines the post-disaster response to recent urban-centered calamities in Indonesia, extracting lessons learned and identifying specific implications for public health. Brief background information is provided on the December 2004 tsunami and earthquakes in Aceh and Nias and the May 2006 earthquake in Yogyakarta and Central Java provinces. Another brief section summarizes the post-disaster response to both events, covering relief and recovery efforts. Lessons that have been learned from the post-disaster response are summarized, including: (a) lessons that apply primarily to the relief phase; (b) lessons for rehabilitation and reconstruction; (c) do’s and don’ts; (d) city-specific observations. Finally, several implications for urban public health are drawn from the experiences to address health inequities in the aftermath of disasters. An initial implication is the importance of undertaking a serious assessment of health sector damages and needs shortly following the disaster. Then, there is a need to distinguish between different types of interventions and concerns during the humanitarian (relief) and recovery phases. As recovery proceeds, it is important to incorporate disaster preparation and prevention into the overall reconstruction effort. Lastly, both relief and recovery efforts must pay special attention to the needs of vulnerable groups. In conclusion, these lessons are likely to be increasingly relevant as the risk of urban-centered disasters increases

Food Price Volatility and the Worrying Trend in Children's Snacking in Indonesia

Rising food prices, increasing urbanisation, rising numbers of working women and reduced time for care has led to more children eating more pre?prepared and instant food in Indonesia. Besides the durability of much packaged food, its price is also less volatile and often cheaper than fresh food. The rising consumption of pre?prepared and instant food is a worrying trend for Indonesia because this newly middle?income country faces a problem of hidden hunger. Among households who took part in the Life in a Time of Food Price Volatility study, we found widespread concerns about the quality, nutritional value and safety of snacks and other instant foods eaten by children. We also heard about the effect on children's relations with their elders. This article looks at links between food prices and changing food habits and argues that children's snacking, while appearing micro, is creating macro?dynamics related to nutrition security and social wellbeing

Public goods and ethnic diversity: evidence from deforestation in Indonesia

This paper shows that the level of deforestation in Indonesia is positively related to the degree of ethnic fractionalization. To identify a causal relation we exploit the exogenous timing of variation in the level of ethnic heterogeneity due to the creation of new jurisdictions. We provide evidence consistent with a lower control of politicians, through electoral punishment, in more ethnically fragmented districts. Our results are consistent with the literature on (under) provision of public goods in ethnically diverse societies

Does better local governance improve district growth performance in Indonesia

A large literature suggests that countries with better governance have higher growth rates. We explore whether this is also true at the sub-national level in Indonesia. We exploit a new dataset of firm perceptions of the quality of economic governance in 243 districts across Indonesia to estimate the impact of nine different dimensions of governance on district growth. Surprisingly, we find relatively little evidence of a robust relationship between the quality of governance and economic performance. However, we do find support for the idea that structural variables, such as economic size, natural resource endowments and population, have a direct influence on the quality of local governance as well as on economic growth. This suggests that efforts to improve local governance should pay greater attention to understanding how such structural characteristics shape the local political economy and how this in turn influences economic performance. Keywords: economic growth; Indonesia; decentralisation; investment climate; governance; private sector

KAJI TINDAK: Program IDT 1994-1997

x,74 hlm.;21 c