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Indonesia + 2 more

New homes for tsunami survivors unveiled

Singapore (dpa) - A team from Singapore Management University (SMU) is bringing a low-cost and simple method of building houses to tsunami-ravaged Thailand, Sri Lanka and Indonesia, organizers said on Friday.

Stanley Lee, an SMU director, said the team has sought to improve and adapt a method developed by the Thailand Institute of Science & Technology Research and first used to building low-cost housing in 2003.

''It's simple technology that can be used by anyone, on site,'' The Straits Times quoted Lee as saying.

The method uses a portable press to quickly and cheaply produce bricks made of locally available soil and cement. Produced on site, they are then fixed together to build a house, he explained.

The 60-member team leaves for Krabi in April for 14 to 18 days, and then moves on to Sri Lanka and Indonesia, the countries worst hit by the December 26 earthquake-triggered tsunami.

In another drive, the Buddhist charity organization Tzu Chi Foundation set a 15 million Singapore dollar (9.1 million US) fundraising target to provide new housing for more than 1,000 Sri Lankan families made homeless.

Money will also be raised by Tzu Chi's Malaysian branch. Local and overseas architects and engineers will be deployed to oversee the construction efforts.

''As much as possible ... tsunami survivors will be involved in the rebuilding work to give them jobs,'' said David Liu, Tzu Chi Singapore's chief executive officer.

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