A popular Indonesian proverb on hard work goes “Never wait the right moment to start actions; but turn the wrong moment into the right actions.” Nothing could be further from the truth, particularly for the quake-hit communities in Indonesia’s island of Lombok.

Like the rest of the world, much of the island’s activities ground to a halt as soon as the COVID-19 pandemic hit. The pandemic’s enormous socio-economic cost to the island and its home province of West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) has taken its toll. Many communities lost their income and became unemployed. The hardest hit were those who were affected by the massive 2018 quake, who now have to bear the so-called ‘double burden’ of the crisis.

Nonetheless, the pandemic has failed to deter the quake-hit communities to build back their much-needed infrastructure.

A recent visit by Vice Governor of NTB, Dr. Rohmi Dajlilah to the sites of the ongoing reconstruction of the schools affirmed UNDP’s commitment to helping communities rebuild following the disaster, despite the COVID-19 pandemic. The schools are part of infrastructure projects under UNDP’s Programme for Earthquake and Tsunami Infrastructure Reconstruction Assistance (PETRA), funded by the German development bank, KfW.

The PETRA project focuses its objectives on accelerating socio-economic recovery in the region through the reconstruction of 14 schools and health facilities, and eight community economic assets which were heavily damaged during the earthquake.  The Project also oversees reconstruction projects in other quake-hit province, Central Sulawesi, which also suffered devastating disaster in 2018.

The reconstruction project has provided short term employment for 481 construction workers and will ultimately benefit 321 families in the area, helping to improve their long term prospects.

Accompanied by her team, the Vice Governor spoke to engineers and construction workers about the ongoing work and appreciated PETRA’s support of the local labor force.

“The PETRA project is a good example of how to integrate ‘build back better’ principles in the construction sector post-disaster. The involvement of local labor in the construction work has helped relieve the double burden our community is currently experiencing,” she said.

Mindful of the pandemic, the project employs strict protocols including physical distancing measures to ensure the safety and security of workers and project personnel.

The reconstruction of community facilities has also shown how local communities, including women and men, have spearheaded much of the post-disaster development. These are quake-effected households who lost families and livelihoods but have come together to help rebuild their lives – and, in turn, rebuild communities.

Mainstreaming gender equality and inclusive development approach in the reconstruction is in line with UNDP’s principles of inclusivity within the ‘build back better’ framework.

Empowering local workers and the local economy is aligned with with provincial regulations concerning guidelines for the Implementation of construction service in West Nusa Tenggara Province.

The reconstruction work has also provided an opportunity for local communities to learn how to build resilient buildings.

“I have experience working in construction. Through this project, I have been able to earn money to support my family, but I have also learned to construct disaster resilient buildings, said Fikir, who has been working on the reconstruction of one of the schools.

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Text and photos by Zaenudin Zein

Edited by Tomi Soetjipto and Ranjit Jose.