Issue: ‘BPS and World Bank’s poverty data’

Nov.13, Online

The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) claims that it has more accurate data on any issues concerning the Indonesian population than any other non-governmental institution, including that of the World Bank, an official says.
“People often criticize our data, saying they are different from that of other institutions, such as the World Bank. We can assure you that we have more accurate data compared to others,” public relations and legal division head with the agency, Sairi Hasbullah, was quoted as saying by Antara news agency.
Sairi cited recent data released by the agency, which shows that 35 million people, or 13.33 percent of the total population, live below the poverty line, much lower than the figure cited in the World Bank’s report of 100 million.
He assumed that the bank used a different yardstick in measuring poverty. He cited as an example
how his agency calculated the ability of a person to survive on Rp 200,000 (US$22.4) per month, as compared
to the Bank’s standard of $2 a day per person.

Your comments:

If you don’t have the experience of living in an Indonesian village then you would not understand, because you can live in a village on natural resources without using very much money.
Ifan
Jakarta

To Ifan, It is easy to say when you live in Jakarta.
Maybe you’ve never heard of bills for schools/doctors/hospitals/ and what to do when many times the weather is bad and there is no harvest in one year.
Fred Johnson
Ubud, Bali

 The World Bank is right. Using Rp200,000 a month as the poverty line is crazy.
Sairi Hasbullah should try to live on that for a year. Don’t try to manipulate the numbers.
Be honest. For a country with the best performing stock market in the world this year it is shame. Where does all the money go?
Wayne
Singaraja, Bali
 
If they are indeed questioning World Bank figures, they should do a better job of explaining how their methodology is superior/more comprehensive/more realistic than that of the Bank.
The Jakarta Post could have done more to press them on this issue. Claiming that only 35 million out of over 200 million Indonesians live below the poverty line is a serious matter.
Comparing two figures that are not comparable doesn’t really lend to BPS’s credibility.
Panchaali
Germany