Women learned skills to protect their businesses from the pandemic at an online fair supported by Prospera. Asri Murtaningsih ran a successful small business in Jakarta before Covid-19 sewing traditional kebaya wedding dresses. But as a result of restrictions imposed to control the virus, all she can do today is make face coverings. Despite this, Ms Asri became the family’s main earner after restrictions forced her husband to stop work as a driver for a ride-hailing firm. “I have faced a lot of stress during the pandemic,” Ms Asri told a three-week online fair, known as Sesi Curhat Jakpreneur Perempuan, hosted on events app Whova between July 13th…

The arrival of Covid-19 has created unprecedented challenges for the world. In Indonesia, the coronavirus has infected more than a million people since the first confirmed cases in March 2020 and tens of thousands have died. Coronavirus curbs on the economy and society continue to have a shocking impact on human development. After years of progress, poverty is rising again. One in ten people in Indonesia today are living below the national poverty line. Child poverty may increase significantly. The social impact would have been far worse had it not been for government assistance.

Over 85 per cent of surveyed households in Indonesia have received at least one form of government social assistance from Indonesia’s National Economic Recovery (PEN) Program, according to a nationwide survey in Indonesia, published today.