BLT can be in the form of many thingsJakarta (ANTARA) - Social assistance, especially direct cash assistance (BLT) for the poor, is not being solely distributed by the Social Affairs Ministry, Minister Tri Rismaharini informed at a press conference at Merdeka Palace, Jakarta, on Friday.
“BLT (distribution) is not merely being carried out by the Social Affairs Ministry. Minister of Manpower, Ida Fauziyah, also has (been providing) BLT for those who need it," she said.
Earlier, the mini national socioeconomic survey carried out by Statistics Indonesia (BPS) showed that the exclusion error rate for the recipients of social assistance distribution was very high, meaning that many extremely poor people did not receive the assistance.
"BLT can be in the form of many things. It can be in the (form of) subsidies for electricity, gas, health, education, or health insurance. It will not come from our ministry only. The Ministry of Manpower has matched the data to avoid data duplication. We have also provided the data for state-run Healthcare and Social Security Agency (BPJS Kesehatan)," the minister emphasized.
She said that her ministry is still adhering to Law Number 13 of 2011 concerning Handling the Poor.
"Data on the beneficiaries came from the regions. In early 2021, we returned the data to the regions and they corrected it. In fact, in Papua, there were four regions that corrected the data 100 percent," she added.
In the past three months, the ministry has not only disbursed direct social assistance but also helped repair residents’ houses, build businesses, and provided other forms of assistance.
"Some of them received Rp6 million in cash. So, next year, they will not receive other assistance," Rismaharini disclosed.
According to the government, the poverty rate in Indonesia currently stands at 9.54 percent of the total population. In 2021, the extreme poverty rate was 2.14 percent. However, it dropped to 2.04 percent from around 5.59 million people in March 2022.
Based on the definition of extreme poverty provided by the World Bank and the United Nations, the government has set the extreme poverty threshold at US$1.9 PPP (purchasing power parity) per capita per day, which is lower than the BPS threshold for general poverty of US$2.5 PPP per capita per day.
The government has prepared direct cash assistance (BLT BBM) for 20.65 million beneficiary families (KPM) amounting to Rp300 thousand, which will be distributed twice: once in September and again in December. Thus, the beneficiaries will receive Rp600 thousand in cash overall. The total budget allocated for the assistance is Rp12.4 trillion.
As of Friday morning, state-owned postal service PT Pos Indonesia has distributed BLT BBM for 12,701,985 KPMs in 482 districts and cities. Next week, PT Pos Indonesia is hoping to cover 90 percent of the total target of 18.585 million KPMs.
Related news: Jokowi reviews social aid distribution in Aru Islands
Related news: Fuel cash aid disbursal ready for 18.4 million beneficiaries: Minister
Related news: Fuel cash aid to maintain people's purchasing power: Jokowi
Translator: Desca Lidya N, Resinta S
Editor: Sri Haryati
Copyright © ANTARA 2022
