Indonesia Observer: 140 million Indonesians below poverty line in 2000 (fwd)

[Robert Weissman <rob@essential.org>]

Dec 14, 1999
Two-thirds of population below poverty line in 2000: Report

JAKARTA (IO) ? After enjoying decades of growth and relative prosperity, it
is estimated that nearly two-thirds of Indonesia?s total population of 210
million will be living below the poverty line at the beginning of the new
millennium.
The World Bank has described the reversal in Indonesia?s fortunes as "the
most dramatic economic collapse anywhere in 50 years".
The United Nations Children?s Fund (Unicef) in Jakarta yesterday issued a
report called the State of the World?s Children 2000, which revealed that
Indonesia is suffering the greatest setbacks of any country in East Asia.
Indonesia saw its gross domestic product fall 12.2% in the first half of
1998, creating millions more poor people.
"The 20 million newly poor Indonesians ? those earning US$1 per day or less
?
could populate a medium-sized country," said the report.
Unicef said the human cost of the economic debacle has been high,
particularly for the nation?s poorest women and children.
Many families, reeling from business failures and the loss of one million
jobs nationwide, have cut back from three meals per day to just one.
"More than 2 million Indonesian children below the age of five are already
malnourished. Some people, in utter desperation, are giving up their
children, creating a large population of ?economic orphans?," the report
said.
The government estimates that 100 million people ? nearly half of the
nation?s population ? cannot afford adequate food.
Unicef Indonesia and Malaysia representative Stephen J. Woodhouse said
Indonesia faces the threat of a lost generation, characterized by a large
number of unhealthy, malnourished and uneducated children, including those
who work on the streets and in dangerous places.
"Indonesia?s new government should have the courage to take swift action in
order to cope with the serious problem, by increasing its budget allocation
for two important sectors ? namely health and education," Woodhouse said
after he presented the report to Health Minister Ahmad Sujudi, who was
representing Coordinating Minister for People?s Welfare and Poverty
Eradication Basri Hasanuddin.
Woodhouse said the government has allocated only 8.5% of the state budget
to
education and 4% to the health sector.
"It is far below the state budget allocated to the same sectors by
Thailand,
Malaysia, and the Philippines, namely between 21% and 26% of their total
budget," he added.
Minister Sujudi claimed the new government is paying serious attention to
the
problem and has set up several strategies to accelerate poverty
eradication.
"The government will optimize the use of Social Safety Net funds for
education and health sectors and to improve the people?s economy," he said.
The government has allocated Rp430.9 billion to boost the Integrated
Poverty
Alleviation Movement which aims to lift millions of impoverished
Indonesians
above the poverty line.