Jakarta Provincial Government’s Covid-19 Aid Programs to Run until December

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – The Jakarta provincial government has announced the provision of social assistance programs for the city’s lower-income and impoverished groups until December 2020.

“The program will continue from the first phase in July until December,” said Vice Governor of Jakarta Ahmad Riza Patria during a webinar on “Access to Social Assistance Programs for Impoverished Residents in Jakarta during Covid-19" on June 26.

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The Vice Governor, however, said that the distribution of the provincial government’s basic goods packages (sembako) will be reduced.

This comes as part of Jakarta’s ongoing new normal transition where businesses have reopened.

Ahmad also stated that the reduction in package distribution is in keeping with improvements to the economic situation in the capital city.

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The Jakarta provincial government will continue identifying daily workers who have been affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

They will also continue to search for those who previously received the provincial government’s social assistance programs. It is unlikely that those individuals will receive social assistance benefits again once their work situation improves.

During the webinar event, the Jakarta Vice Governor shared his recent finding of data discrepancies among different government bodies or agencies.

The discrepancy affects access to social assistance programs, especially for the city’s most vulnerable communities.

Achmad said he hoped the database for social assistance programs will improve so that the groups that need assistance the most will be reached.

“Let’s use this moment to improve our data which in the end, helps to improve the distribution of sembako packages,” said Achmad.

Jakarta’s street vendors receive help

On June 27, around 108 street vendors in South Jakarta received social assistance benefits in the form of food supplies.