Scavengers look for plastic waste on Thursday (01/10/2019) at the Jatibarang garbage dump in Semarang, Central Java. Social Affairs Minister Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita is optimistic that the poverty rate could reach below 9.5 percent this year through the ministry’s poverty alleviation programs, such as the Family Hope, non-cash aid and food assistance programs.
The percentage of the poor in the total population continues to decline. This achievement must be followed by continuous quality improvement.
Statistics Indonesia (BPS) last week announced that the poverty rate fell from 10.12 percent in September 2017 to 9.66 percent in September 2018, equivalent to 910,000 people.
The decline was also accompanied by a fall in the wealth gap, marked by a reduction in the Gini ratio from 0.392 to 0.384. The rates for severity and depth of poverty also improved in line with the higher poverty line (expenditure), from Rp 387,160 to Rp 410,670 per capita per month.
The figures show that the government\'s efforts to improve the welfare of the poor have succeeded. Various social assistance programs, such as the Family Hope program, non-cash food assistance, free primary and secondary education, health insurance, MSME loan subsidies and controlled inflation, appear to have helped achieve to the target.
Even though the national achievements are encouraging, a number of conditions must still be addressed to follow up the decline in poor people with improved quality of life. BPS data shows that welfare in rural areas still lags behind urban areas particularly concerning rural livelihoods, which generally depend on trade in food commodities, in addition to the poorer quality of physical, social and economic infrastructure in rural areas compared to urban areas.
Therefore, it is vital to maintain profitable prices of agricultural products, improve rural roads, provide electricity and clean water, ensure access to education and healthcare services and pursue financial inclusion.
Java has a greater number of poor people than outlying islands. Apart from the fact that more than half of the population lives in Java, the island’s natural resources are being depleted and half of its workforce has basic education only to junior high school. If we want no one to be left behind, job creation must absorb them while promoting the spirit and development of entrepreneurship.
Another challenge is that the largest expenditure of 73.54 percent is still spent on food, with the purchase of rice reaching 19.54 percent in urban areas and 25.51 percent in rural areas – an increase compared to September 2017. This shows that many people still do not have the resources to meet their other basic needs. The efforts to diversify the rural economy must be intensified by continuing to guide villages in use village funds in the best possible manner according to their individual needs and potentials.
The government’s efforts to stabilize food prices should be balanced with protecting farmers’ wages. Price stability at the farming level, and not just staple foods, can be achieved by building a sustainable upstream to downstream system of agribusiness. With a holistic approach, we will achieve better quality and sustainable results.
