COVID-19-Induced Poverty and Unemployment Levels in Indonesia to Remain High in 2021: INDEF

Despite positive economic growth of 3.0% expected in Indonesia in 2021, the on-going global pandemic could lead to a rise in poverty levels and unemployment as economic activity remains slow, according to Tauhid Ahmad, Executive Director, Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (INDEF). Tauhid added that the anticipation of the COVID-19 vaccine becoming available only during the second half of 2021 would continue to stem the pace of the economic recovery.

Data from Statistics Indonesia (BPS) revealed that 2.67 million individuals had lost their jobs as a result of business disruptions due to COVID-19, resulting in the unemployment rate reaching 7.07% in August 2020, the highest rate since 2011. According to T...