Bogor, W Java (ANTARA) - As many as 23,000 families severely impacted by the economic fallout of the coronavirus outbreak have received cash transfers, or "Bantuan Langsung Tunai" (BLT), from the Bogor City administration, an official said.
"The cash transfers have been distributed to the recipients' homes through a collaboration with state-run postal service PT Pos Indonesia on Tuesday," Bogor Deputy Mayor Dedie A Rachim told journalists here on Wednesday.
The BLT recipients have been registered on the basis of Citizenship Identity Numbers (NIK), he explained, adding that they include people who have lost their jobs and those who cannot work due to the ongoing pandemic, he said.
Cash transfers are being distributed to groups most vulnerable to the economic fallout of COVID-19, who cannot even afford to buy staple food, the Deputy Mayor informed.
Eligible recipients will receive Rp500,000 for four months, he added.
The coronavirus outbreak initially struck the Chinese city of Wuhan at the end of 2019 and then spread to various parts of the world, including countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
The Indonesian Government announced the country's first confirmed cases on March 2, 2020. Since then, the central and regional governments have made persistent efforts to flatten the coronavirus curve by imposing healthcare protocols and social restrictions.
To break the chain of transmission of COVID-19, which has impacted the purchasing power of many families in Indonesia, large-scale social restrictions have been enforced in several cities, including Jakarta, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, Bekasi, and Pekanbaru.
The central government has also banned homebound travel, locally known as ‘mudik', during the fasting month of Ramadhan and the Idul Fitri holiday season.
The government officially implemented the 'mudik' ban from 00:00 hrs Western Indonesia Time (WIB) on Friday, April 24, 2020.
According to the Indonesian Transportation Ministry, the temporary ban has been imposed on the use of public transportation, private vehicles, and motorbikes for ‘mudik’. The ban excludes the movement of logistics, drugs, officers, fire engines, ambulances, and hearses.
The ban will be in place until May 31, 2020, for land transportation; June 15, 2020, for railway transportation; June 8, 2020, for sea transportation; and, on June 1, 2020, for air transportation. (INE)
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