Jakarta, Feb. 27 -- The Indonesian government has begun building permanent housing units for residents displaced by deadly floods and landslides that struck Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra last November.

Home Affairs Minister Tito Karnavian, who heads the Task Force for the Acceleration of Post-Disaster Rehabilitation and Reconstruction in Sumatra, said initiatives to speed up permanent home projects have become a top priority.

"The speed at which permanent housing development proceeds hinges on data provided by regional governments," Karnavian noted in a statement received in Jakarta on Friday.

He therefore pledged to keep pressing governors and district heads in affected regions to ensure comprehensive and reliable data so that...