BANDA ACEH, Indonesia — After thanking Allah for sparing his four children, Abudakar Usman checked his four supermarkets in this shattered city. Only one was functional. He offered another prayer, and then went to work.
Usman called his suppliers in Medan, about a 12-hour drive away, persuading them to send truckloads of instant noodles, water, oil and sugar. Five of his 12 employees had been killed, so he rounded up survivors from other markets. Then Usman and his sons worked through the night to mop up the mud and repair store shelves. On the sixth day after the earthquake and tsunami, the stench of death still in the air, Usman revved up a generator and opened the doors of Pante Parak, or Silver Beach.
"It's a good opportunity for business," the 64-year-old said outside his market as customers jostled in and out. "A lot of visitors have come to town, and they need something." Since reopening, Usman has been raking in about $8,700 a day, five times the daily volume of the store before the disaster.
Such optimism may seem a bit misplaced in Banda Aceh, the capital of northern Sumatra's Aceh province, where tens of thousands of people were killed and countless homes and businesses destroyed. Yet it's a common trait among those from Sigli, a small town about 60 miles east of here known for its highly entrepreneurial culture.
Like the ethnic Chinese who own a disproportionate number of businesses in Indonesia, Sigli natives dominate the retail market in Banda Aceh. Part of Indonesia's majority ethnic Malay population, the merchants are called "black Chinese" by locals because of their darker skin.
As Banda Aceh begins to look toward rebuilding its economy, Sigli natives figure to play an important role. Their can-do spirit will be needed if Aceh is to get back on its feet. The World Bank and the Indonesian government this week estimated that it would cost up to $5 billion to replace what was damaged in Indonesia in the Dec. 26 disaster.
"We should not only focus on relief, but also help these kinds of survivors," said Azwar Hasan, a lecturer in public administration at the University of Indonesia in Jakarta, the national capital, speaking of entrepreneurs from Sigli. "They have a great potential to awaken and rebuild soon and to influence others."
Hardly anyone here had insurance. Some didn't have a bank account, or even a credit card, because they dealt strictly in cash, now buried under rubble or lost to looters.
