GOVT CONTINUING EFFORTS TO ACHIEVE POVERTY REDUCTION TARGET

Jakarta, August 14 (ANTARA) - The government continues to make efforts to lower the poverty rate in Indonesia as lts target in the matter has yet to be achieved, a spokesman said.

"The poverty graph or trend in Indonesia has steadily decreased. The poverty rate in 2008, both in percentage and absolute numbers, is the lowest in the last 10 years," said presidential spokesman Andi Mallarangeng here on Thursday.

Mallarangeng was commenting on a book published on August 14 by Bappenas (National Development Planning Board) on three years of RJPM (Medium-term Development Plan) 2004-2009.

He said the government was continuing to strive for the attaimment of its target to lower the poverty rate to 8 percent by 2009.

According to the Bappenas report, the poverty rate in Indonesia currently still stood at 9 percent of the population.

The Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) recently released a report that economic growth in Indonesia during the first semester of 2008 reached a rate of 6.36 percent.

Meanwhile, during the launching of the report, Minister for National Development Planning/Chairman of the National Development Planning Board (Bappenas) Paskah Suzetta said of the three development agendas in RJPM, namely making Indonesia a safe place to live in, creating a just and democratic society, and improving social welfare, the last one was the most difficult to achieve.

"The main obstacle is related with the fuel oil price hikes and natural disasters such as tsunamis and earthquakes. These situations hampered economic growth ," he said.

Suzetta also said the world food crisis caused by the oil price surges had made it more difficult to create social welfare for all Indonesians.