Just happened to see a chopper way cooler than that of which Mr. Powell flew a few weeks back and then realized it was the UN Assistant Secretary-General Hafiz Pasha on the move in his sweep through the Asian Tsunami Disaster.

Seven weeks after the tsunami, it is now necessary to take stock of the humanitarian response and more clearly define the transitional stage into recovery and long-term reconstruction. Through it all, the needs, hopes, and involvement of the communities hardest hit by the tsunami must be at the heart of the work at hand.

Regardless of the strong viewpoint from the International community, it's a matter of whether the local authorities are having an equal amount of interest on the same issues in this multi-regional effort. Many accused the government for having aid deposited in bank accounts rather than putting them to good use, at least for what they were intended. But that's not necessarily the wisest move they could make. However, things are bound to turn one way or another and the biggest rivals in this effort would be the ones in-charge themselves.

That's most probably why the UNDP has come in to action with the intention to kick-start a realistic recovery process. They have begun to provide resources to support local communities through small-scale cash-for-work initiatives to restore minor infrastructure, such as small access roads, irrigation channels and culverts etc. What's more important is to help communities get their lives back on track, not just let them be the numbers in camp sides. Then again, building houses far from the ocean requires more land, land that's so hard to find in this very small island already filled considerably. This is where wise thinking comes in to play.

Thing are slowly moving into an organized joint effort. But it's both supervision and execution that could lead to fair-play. To which extent these two would be put into action is just but a matter of observation during these amusingly froggy times we live in.