Jakarta, IO – National Development Planning Minister/Bappenas chief Suharso Monoarfa warned that extreme poverty rate could increase dramatically at the end of 2024 because the calculation benchmark needs to be adjusted to the global standard, reported CNBC Indonesia, Tuesday (6/6).
The government so far has used the poverty line of US$1.9 purchasing power parity (PPP) per day while the global standard has been revised up to US$2.15 as per The World Bank.
With the current calculations, Indonesia must bring 5.8 million people out of poverty to meet its zero poverty target by 2024. This is equivalent to 2.9 million people per year. When using the new benchmark, this figure will increase to 6.7 million (3.35 million per year).
Nevertheless, Monoarfa assured that the government would consistently try to reduce the poverty rate through more targeted social assistance provisions, social and economic empowerment to raise income level, and expanding access to basic services. (un)