Jakarta (AsiaNews/Agencies) – More than 100 million Indonesians are surviving on less than less two US dollars a day, the World Bank said today. It warned that “widespread poverty” in the world's fourth largest country was putting children’s education at risk.
According to the organisation’s latest evaluation of the Indonesian economy, around 40% of parents cannot afford to send their children to secondary school, a problem that is "perpetuating poverty from one generation to the next”.
The World Bank said Jakarta had made “progress” since the devastating 1997 Asian financial crisis, but nearly 50% of the population was still afflicted by poverty.
"The secret to reducing poverty is to help these people participate in Indonesia's rising economic growth," said Andrew Steer, the World Bank's top official in Indonesia. Despite this growth, unemployment remains high at more than 10%.
“Indonesia’s vast geography - roughly 17,000 islands spanning 6% of the equator” is contributing to economic disparities.