The assistance is being provided on account of the increase in fuel prices in Indonesia.
"As of September 23, 2022, the wage subsidy assistance has been disbursed to 23,058 beneficiaries in 22 districts/cities in NTT," head of the Regional Office of the ministry's Directorate General of Treasury (DJPb) in NTT province, Catur Ariyanto Widodo, confirmed here on Friday.
According to Widodo, the total BSU disbursed to the beneficiaries in NTT has reached Rp13.83 billion.
The targeted beneficiaries are workers that meet several requirements: they are Indonesian nationals, active participants in the Workers Social Security Agency's (BPJS Ketenagakerjaan's) program as of July 2022, earn a maximum of Rp3.5 million per month, and are not state civil apparatus (ASN) or members of the Indonesian Military (TNI) or National Police (Polri), he said.
In addition, eligible beneficiaries are not registered for basic needs cash assistance (BLT), the Family Hope Program (PKH), or other assistance.
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Each beneficiary is being provided Rp600 thousand, disbursed once a year and directly to the beneficiary's bank account through state-owned banks (Himbara banks), he informed.
The assistance is part of the government's efforts to protect the economy of the community from the impacts of the recent increase in fuel prices, he highlighted.
The assistance is expected to ease the burden on beneficiaries to meet their daily needs and maintain their purchasing power, thereby pushing economic growth in regions, Widodo remarked.
On September 3, the Indonesian government raised the price of subsidized Pertalite fuel from Rp7,650 per liter to Rp10 thousand per liter, subsidized diesel from Rp5,150 per liter to Rp6,800 per liter, and non-subsidized Pertamax from Rp12,500 to Rp14,500 per liter.
The price increase came into force after the government diverted fuel subsidies to provide social assistance since the spending on energy subsidies and energy compensation from the state budget had reached Rp502.4 trillion, with energy subsidies accounting for Rp208.9 trillion and energy compensation Rp293.5 trillion of the total figure.
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Translator: Aloysius Lewokeda, Raka Adji
Editor: Suharto
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