Jakarta, Dec. 26 -- Minister of Housing and Settlement Areas, Maruarar Sirait, has instructed officials to ensure that permanent housing locations for disaster survivors in Sumatra are located close to public facilities.

"Please prepare locations for permanent housing that are technically flood-free, safe from potential landslides, close to public facilities, and legally clear. Do not choose locations that damage the environment," Sirait said in a statement in Jakarta on Friday.

He added that the construction of permanent housing depends on the speed of local governments, including housing development carried out through mutual cooperation.

Sirait highlighted North Tapanuli Regency as a potential model for accelerated and integrated po...