Poverty in Indonesia by Rendy Pritananda
3
Rendy Pritananda 2014 Poverty in Indonesia has become a real threat for the country. Povertydata.worldbank.org says in 1990 Indonesian poverty reached 96,9 million people or 54,3% of its total population and in 2009, it became 48,5 million people or 20,4% of its total population. [1] It reduced 33,9% in 19 years which is impressive. But if we compare it to China which has 48,4% reduction of its poverty headcount ratio (1990: 60,2% - 2009: 11,8%) [2] in the same interval, Indonesia is not that good moreover China has more population than Indonesia. What has China done to reduce its excessive poverty? That can be taken as an example to be applied in Indonesia. China has implemented their strategy successfully which is making more efficient and effective use of available funding. [3] A number of measures is needed to achieve it. First, available poverty reduction funding should be targeted to all poor townships. It focuses on only poor areas to make an efficient and effective use. Second, greatly strengthening of financial monitoring and supervision of the use of reduction funds must be done. This can avoid a reduction funds leakage to non-poor areas. Third, increasing the productivity of upland agriculture could be greatly enhanced to achieve effective funding. It can be made through adopting a multi-year "project-based" approach with greater community participation in design and implementation, developing appropriate applied agricultural technologies, and completing realistic assessments of the market prospects for a wide array of niche crops which are now being planted extensively in China’s upland areas. Fourth, greater efforts must be made to provide the poor with improved access to basic education, health, credit, water supply, and roads and other basic infrastructure. Fifth, providing an enabling environment for rural enterprise development should be focused by local government. With a strong commitment from China government to decrease its poverty issue, they have managed it well within 2 decades and become one of the fastest countries to reduce poverty. One article at Worldbank.org which explains about Indonesia poverty issue, gives a solution through “10 steps to conquer poverty”. [4] Those steps are: 1. Rural roads and electricity improvement 2. Sanitary improvement through its better facilities 3. Nullification of import rice prohibition policy 4. Limitation of tax and district retribution that could harm local business and mendicants 5. Giving a right of using land to the poor 6. Build financing institutions for the poor’s benefit 7. Improvement of education quality and provision of education transition for high school 8. Decrease a mortality rate of expectant 9. Provide more funds for poor areas 10. Devise the accurate-targeted social protection Comparison between China’s strategies and Indonesia’s strategies is quite similar due to China’s that had been learned as example by Indonesia although it still has a bunch of poverty issues. What is the difference between them considering they both have an excessive population, similar strategies, and a broad area? Many factors that affect the difference such as:
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This is my first essay in english. Actually, It was made for applying to ACC Global Leadership as one of Indonesian delegates the seminar held in South Korea in August, 2014. Your opinion and comment are welcome.
Transcript of Poverty in Indonesia by Rendy Pritananda
Rendy Pritananda 2014
Poverty in Indonesia has become a real threat for the country. Povertydata.worldbank.org
says in 1990 Indonesian poverty reached 96,9 million people or 54,3% of its total population and
in 2009, it became 48,5 million people or 20,4% of its total population.[1]
It reduced 33,9% in 19
years which is impressive. But if we compare it to China which has 48,4% reduction of its
poverty headcount ratio (1990: 60,2% - 2009: 11,8%)[2]
in the same interval, Indonesia is not that
good moreover China has more population than Indonesia. What has China done to reduce its
excessive poverty? That can be taken as an example to be applied in Indonesia.
China has implemented their strategy successfully which is making more efficient and
effective use of available funding.[3]
A number of measures is needed to achieve it. First,
available poverty reduction funding should be targeted to all poor townships. It focuses on only
poor areas to make an efficient and effective use. Second, greatly strengthening of financial
monitoring and supervision of the use of reduction funds must be done. This can avoid a
reduction funds leakage to non-poor areas. Third, increasing the productivity of upland
agriculture could be greatly enhanced to achieve effective funding. It can be made through
adopting a multi-year "project-based" approach with greater community participation in design
and implementation, developing appropriate applied agricultural technologies, and completing
realistic assessments of the market prospects for a wide array of niche crops which are now being
planted extensively in China’s upland areas. Fourth, greater efforts must be made to provide the
poor with improved access to basic education, health, credit, water supply, and roads and other
basic infrastructure. Fifth, providing an enabling environment for rural enterprise development
should be focused by local government. With a strong commitment from China government to
decrease its poverty issue, they have managed it well within 2 decades and become one of the
fastest countries to reduce poverty.
One article at Worldbank.org which explains about Indonesia poverty issue, gives a
solution through “10 steps to conquer poverty”.[4]
Those steps are:
1. Rural roads and electricity improvement
2. Sanitary improvement through its better facilities
3. Nullification of import rice prohibition policy
4. Limitation of tax and district retribution that could harm local business and
mendicants
5. Giving a right of using land to the poor
6. Build financing institutions for the poor’s benefit
7. Improvement of education quality and provision of education transition for high
school
8. Decrease a mortality rate of expectant
9. Provide more funds for poor areas
10. Devise the accurate-targeted social protection
Comparison between China’s strategies and Indonesia’s strategies is quite similar due to China’s
that had been learned as example by Indonesia although it still has a bunch of poverty issues.
What is the difference between them considering they both have an excessive population, similar
strategies, and a broad area? Many factors that affect the difference such as:
Rendy Pritananda 2014
- Corruption of the national fund (called APBN) by state officials that harm the people.
Indonesia was the 114th
of 177 of the cleanest countries in the world in 2013 while China
was the 80th
.[5]
- Misallocation of fuel subsidies. The subsidies which is targeted for the poor only cannot
help the poverty reduction due to inefficient and ineffective results. The IDR 317.2
trillion or 18,85% of total national fund (2013)[6]
was issued for it. This misallocation
could be issued for other program which is more efficient and effective (such as support
the agriculture and give the people the education of using local products)[7]
although that
subsidies cannot be removed instantly.
- Lack of strong leadership in the structure. Strong leadership is one of many factors
that could make the organization or country works properly. Indonesia needs a real leader
who can execute this issue with integrated programs. Currently, the existing programs
have not been integrated yet. For example, China has implemented their system called
“The socialist market economy” which is placed the country in the central position,
farmers as China’s majority inhabitant are left to produce and invest following to market
law, their government did not pull out the subsidies abruptly, and they did not set up the
privatization.[8]
- An inconsistent implementation of the poverty reduction programs. The success of
these programs does not only depend on “what programs that the country must do?” but
also the consistency of the implementation of the programs. This will determine whether
the programs are successfully implemented and sustained or not.
- Other factors as well as unprepared infrastructure to modernization, Indonesians’ mind
sets, and so on.
Indonesia still has some homework to finish. Establishing its government structure with the
competency-based human resource and repealing the corruption, collusion, and nepotism
(KKN) may be the first task to be done. The country’s future depends on this factor
considering above issues that Indonesia has which might prevent the efficiency and
effectiveness of reducing poverty. Someone must bring the great revolution to this status quo.
Rendy Pritananda 2014
REFERENCE
1. http://povertydata.worldbank.org/poverty/country/IDN
2. http://povertydata.worldbank.org/poverty/country/CHN
3.http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTPOVERTY/EXTPA/0,,co
ntentMDK:20204887~menuPK:435735~pagePK:148956~piPK:216618~theSitePK:430367,0
0.html
4.http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTINDONESIA/Resources/Publication/280016-
1106130305439/617331-1110769011447/810296-1110769073153/reducingpoverty.pdf
5. http://www.transparency.org/cpi2013/results
6. http://www.anggaran.depkeu.go.id/Content/APBN%202013.pdf
7. http://www.merdeka.com/uang/minim-alokasi-dana-apbn-ke-pertanian-buat-indonesia-
rajin-impor.html
8.books.google.co.id/books?id=swZLefK3nCAC&pg=PA209&lpg=PA209&dq=pemimpin+
perubahan+cina&source=bl&ots=CE7lfSy5vD&sig=kHs5_Jocv7T6pD9OcwrqINMGOi8&
hl=id&sa=X&ei=kkHFU8nBNYKgugT42YDwBA&ved=0CCEQ6AEwAQ
