Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia's Vice President Ma'ruf Amin on Thursday said that the government continues to implement three strategies to reduce the national poverty rate to 7.5 percent and eradicate extreme poverty this year.
"(First) ministries and government agencies, as well as regional governments, should continue improving their data to (ensure the benefits) reach poor families without social assistance or benefit programs," Amin said while chairing a ministerial-level meeting on the development of the accelerated poverty alleviation program in Jakarta.
By data, he was referring to the Extreme Poverty Alleviation Acceleration Data (P3KE) and Social Welfare Integrated Data (DTKS), which continue to be synchronized.
The second strategy is carrying out special interventions in the form of social assistance and benefit distribution and economic empowerment programs in provinces with a high prevalence of poverty, such as Papua, West Papua, and East Nusa Tenggara.
Such interventions will also be implemented in regions with a high number of poor residents, such as Central Java, West Java, and East Java.
"The third strategy is distributing additional benefits outside our regular programs, such as rice assistance and the El-Nino direct cash assistance, which will accelerate our poverty alleviation efforts," Amin informed.
The Vice President also instructed the ministries, government agencies, and regional governments to ensure timely disbursement of aid and accurate number of benefit recipients.
The authorities must also be attentive to vulnerable groups, such as the elderly, people living with disabilities, migrant workers, and women heads of families, he added.
"Hence, the ministries, government agencies, and regional administrations should improve coordination between agencies to ensure the programs complement each other and ensure affirmative actions for the benefit of women and the youth in obtaining employment," Amin said.
He also emphasized the urgent need for timely social assistance disbursal before the end of February 2024 to ensure its inclusion in Statistics Indonesia's Socio-Economic Household Survey (SUSENAS) next March.
The participants of the meeting included Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture, Muhadjir Effendy; Minister of Finance, Sri Mulyani Indrawati; Minister of Social Affairs, Tri Rismaharini; Minister of Manpower, Ida Fauziyah; and Minister of Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises Teten Masduki.
Related news: RI should reduce 2.5 pct of poverty rate targeted until 2024-end: VP
Related news: Ministry holds workshop to boost PENA beneficiaries’ productivity
Translator: Andi Firdaus, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
