The Indonesian province of Aceh has made remarkable progress in rebuilding since the devastating tsunami six years ago but faces major challenges in cutting poverty and inequality and reducing the impact of future disasters, a United Nations-backed report warns.

Five years after the massive Indian Ocean tsunami, which left a devastating trail of death and destruction, millions of people have benefited from the influx of aid by rebuilding stronger infrastructure, social services and disaster warning systems than existed before the catastrophe, according to the United Nations agencies at the core of the recovery effort.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today welcomed the launch of the Indonesian Tsunami Early Warning System, congratulating the country’s Government for its regional leadership by taking steps towards making its citizens less vulnerable to the effects of such a natural disaster.

An independent tsunami early warning system for the Caribbean region, in place by 2010 at the latest, is likely to be a major step closer today when a United Nations-backed coordination group decides whether to give the go-ahead for a regional data-sharing system.