His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mui'izzaddein Waddaulah, Sultan and Yang DiPertuan of Brunei Darussalam, has flown home after attending the Special ASEAN Leaders Meeting on the Aftermath of Earthquake and Tsunami in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta. Accompanying His Majesty was His Royal Highness Prince Mohammad Bolkiah, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Brunei Darussalam.

The special meeting addressed issues on the aftermath of the 26th December disaster, such as the emergency relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction, prevention and mitigation. To this end the leaders have agreed to mobilize urgently additional resources to meet the emergency relief and encouraged private sector's participation and contribution to the rehabilitation and reconstruction efforts. They also agreed to establish a regional early warning system such as a Regional TsunamiEarly Warning Center on the Indian Ocean and the South-east Asia Region.

Before leaving the Halim Perdana Kusuma International Airport Friday afternoon, a doa selamat was read by the State Mufti, Pehin Dato Ustaz Hj Awang Abdul Aziz. Present at the Airport to bid farewell to His Majesty were Indonesia's Minister of Communication and Information, His Excellency Dr Sofyan Djalil and other senior officials of the Indonesian government. Also present were Brunei Darussalam's Ambassador to Indonesia, His Excellency Dato Seri Setia Dr Hj Mohd Amin and officers from the Embassy of Brunei Darussalam in Jakarta.

In his launching speech, The Ministry of Culture Youth and Sports who is also the advisor of the country's Tsunami Disaster Relief Fund said private sectors in this country are among the group that shows their concerns towards the suffering of the tsunami victims. The charity sale was jointly organised by the Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, India, Indonesia, Philippines and Sri Lanka Citizens Association.

Apart from the charity sale, the association will also organise a charity golf and aerobic session.

Brunei Darussalam will send its first shipment of aid loaded with clothing for the Indonesian province of Acheh on the 13th of this month.

Friday, members of the Brunei Darussalam Scout Association were busy preparing, packaging and sorting all clothing received by Brunei donors.

The shipment is expected to reach Indonesia within the period of ten to twelve days and upon arrival there, the donations will be managed by the Pramuka Movement Scout Indonesia.

Meanwhile, the Brunei Darussalam Tsunami Disaster Relief Fund has so far collected more than eight hundred thousand dollars.

An ambitious new plan to expand the area of the capital city has been unveiled by the Bandar Seri Begawan Municipal Department. In an interview with RTB, its Chairman, Awang Haji Saji bin Haji Mudin revealed plans are being discussed to expand the size of Bandar Seri Begawan.

A special committee will meet in the first week of the new year to go over the proposal. The expansion would give the Municipal Department additional responsibility to manage an area that is almost 10 times bigger than the present one, and will also include major commercial areas such as in Kiulap and Gadong.

Awang Haji Saji also revealed a number of proposals in line with the Municipal Department's vision to transform Bandar Seri Begawan into a thriving city centre, capable of competing against other cities in the region. These plans include the construction of a city hall and the expansion of Jalan Residency into a dual carriageway.