Policy Research
In early December SMERU will be hosting two important events. On December 6, the Persepsi Daerah team will be reporting on the major findings arising from its numerous provincial surveys on the impact of the regional deregulation process.
Throughout the past eighteen months there has been understandable interest - and considerable debate - about the impact of the crisis on poverty in Indonesia. Many claims and counter claims have been made in the press and elsewhere which have been the cause of some confusion.
Welcome to another edition of the SMERU Newsletter. In earlier editions we have focussed our attention on the impact of the crisis on the poorer sections of the community. Yet the financial crisis began with the collapse of the banking and corporate sector in urban centers and so it is also appropriate to consider the effects of those events on "white-collar" workers.
In 2003, Indonesia's decentralization reform was in its third year of implementation. The “big bang” start had marked the transfer of resources — assets, personnel and finances — to the regions to compensate for the newly added authorities and functions.
In a fast urbanizing Indonesia, the rural sector still plays an important role in the countrys economy. Although declining, the majority of the population still live and find employment in rural areas. However, rural areas lag behind urban areas in many aspects. As a result, around 80% of all the poor in the country are found in rural areas.
