Criteria Of Poor According To BPS

Illustration of the poor (Photo from Antara)

YOGYAKARTA - Entering the new year 2023, the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) reports that there will be an increase in the number of poor people in Indonesia in September 2022. The increase in the number of poor people has occurred in rural and urban areas. Then the criteria for poverty according to BPS?

The increase in the number of poor people in Indonesia occurred by 0.03 percent in September 2022 compared to March 2022. The poor in the country increased by 0.2 million to 26.36 million people. The poverty rate in rural areas is still much higher than in urban areas.

So what causes the increase in the number of poor people in Indonesia and what are the criteria for poverty according to BPS?

Poor Criteria According to BPS

There are 14 poor criteria according to BPS which are used to determine the condition of the poor. A person or family can be said to be poor and eligible to receive social assistance if they meet at least 9 criteria.

1. The floor area of ​​a residential building is less than 8m2 per person
2. The type of floor of the house is made of cheap dirt/bamboo/wood
3. The type of wall of the house made of bamboo/ thatch/low-quality wood/wall without plaster.
4. Do not have defecation facilities/ shared with other households.
5. Household lighting sources do not use electricity.
6. Sources of drinking water come from unprotected wells/springs/rivers/rainwater.
7. The fuel for daily cooking is firewood/ charcoal/ kerosene
8. Only consume meat/milk/chicken once a week.
9. Only buying one new set of clothes a year
10. Only able to eat as much as one / two times a day
11. Cannot afford medical expenses at the puskesmas/polyclinic
12. The sources of income for the head of the household are: farmers with a land area of ​​500m2, farm labourers, fishermen, construction workers, plantation workers and/or other jobs with an income of less than IDR 600,000,- per month
13. Highest education of the head of household: not attending school/ not completing primary school/ completing primary school.
14. Do not have savings/goods that are easy to sell with a minimum of IDR 500,000, - such as credit/non-credit motorbikes, gold, livestock, motor boats, or other capital goods.

Causes of the Poor Population in Indonesia Increasing

The increase in the number of poor people in Indonesia occurred evenly throughout the island, except for Sumatra, which experienced a slight decline. Most of the poor are on the islands of Java and Sumatra.

Margo Yuwono, Head of BPS, said there are a number of factors that affect poverty in Indonesia. The factors in question include the slowing down of the economy in the third quarter of 2022, the layoffs of employees in the labor-intensive sector, and an increase in the cost of agricultural production.

Based on reports, it shows that there are many companies that are laying off their employees throughout September 2022. The layoffs are carried out by companies in labor-intensive sectors, such as textile, footwear, and technology companies.

Another factor that affects the level of poverty is the increase in commodity prices of basic commodities. A number of materials that experienced an increase in price, including eggs, wheat flour, rice. Price increases also occurred in sales of pertalite, Pertamax, 3-kilogram LPG, and housing contracts.

Meanwhile, economic expert Bhima Yudistira said there were a number of things that led to an increase in poverty. First, due to inflation from the food and energy sectors. Both job opportunities have not increased post-pandemic. Third, there are many workers who are laid off and do not have certainty about their jobs.

Such is the information on the criteria for poverty according to BPS and an overview of the reasons for the increase in the number of poor people in Indonesia. The community is required to carry out several strategies to overcome poverty in the country.

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