Indonesia makes progress in poverty reduction

Statistics Indonesia (BPS) has reported that the number of people categorised as poor in Indonesia has declined by 3.06 million, or around 2.22%, bringing the country’s poor population percentage into 9.03% in the last 10 years, acting chief secretary of the BPS Imam Machdi said on July 1.

Acting chief secretary of Statistics Indonesia (BPS), Imam Machdi, sharing consumer price index (IHK) data in Jakarta on July 1, 2024. (Photo: en.antaranews.com)

The number of poor stood at 25.22 million in March 2024, a decline from 28.28 million in March 2014. On average, the number of poor fell by around 300,000 per year, with the rate of decline in rural areas being higher than in urban areas.

The poverty rate in rural areas was recorded at 11.79% in March 2024, 2.38 percentage points lower compared to the 14.17% in March 2014.

Meanwhile, the poverty rate in urban areas in March 2024 stood at 7.09%, 1.25 percentage points lower than 10 years before when the rate was recorded at 8.34%.

In the islands, the highest poverty rate in March 2024 was recorded in the Maluku and Papua islands, namely at 19.39 %. Meanwhile, the lowest poverty rate was seen in Kalimantan island at 5.44%.

The highest number of poor was recorded in Java island at 13.24 million, while the island with the lowest number of poor was Kalimantan at 0.94 million.

The people's poverty status was determined by the poverty line, that is the minimum level of income to meet food and non-food needs.

The poverty line in March 2024 stood at 582,932 IDR (around 35.67USD) per capita per month, an increase of 5.90% compared to March 2023.

For urban areas, the poverty line stood at 601,871 IDR (around 36.83 USD), higher than the poverty line in rural areas, namely 556,874 IDR (around 34.07 USD)./.

VNA