The number of poverty in Jakarta has climbed again, with recent data revealing a concerning shift while national figures show improvement. According to the Jakarta Statistics Agency (BPS Jakarta), as of March 2025, the number of people living in poverty in the capital rose to 464,870. This marks an increase of 15,800 individuals compared to September 2024, when the figure was 449,070.
“The number of poor residents reached 464,870 people, an increase of 15,800 compared to September 2024, which was 449,070,” said Head of BPS Jakarta, Nurul Hasanudin, in a statement received in Jakarta on Friday, July 25, 2025.
The poverty rate in Jakarta is now 4.28 percent, rising by 0.14 percentage points from 4.14 percent in September 2024.
Interestingly, while Jakarta is experiencing a rise, national data shows a downward trend. The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) reported that, on a national scale, poverty numbers decreased by 200,000 people between September 2024 and March 2025. The total poor population now stands at 23.85 million.
“The March 2025 poverty figure is the lowest in the past two decades,” said Ateng Hartono, Deputy for Social Statistics at BPS, during a press conference at the BPS building in Jakarta on Friday, July 25, 2025.
Ateng explained that the national poverty rate in March 2025 dropped to 8.47 percent, down by 0.1 percentage points from September 2024. He noted that this figure is the lowest ever recorded since poverty data began to be published by BPS in 1960.
Rural areas contributed significantly to this decline. The poverty rate in villages fell by 0.31 percentage points, from 11.34 percent in September 2024 to 11.03 percent in March 2025. In contrast, cities saw a slight increase, with the urban poverty rate rising by 0.07 percentage points from 6.66 percent to 6.73 percent.
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“The urban poor population grew by around 0.07 percentage points in March 2025 compared to September 2024,” Ateng added.
BPS Jakarta pointed to several factors behind the capital’s rising poverty numbers. One of the main reasons is the increase in informal employment. The share of informal workers rose to 37.95 percent in February 2025, up 1.89 percentage points from 36.06 percent in February 2024. Meanwhile, the percentage of workers in formal employment dropped by the same margin during the same period.
Another contributing factor was the rising inflation trend observed between October and December 2024. Jakarta’s inflation in March 2025 reached 2.00 percent, which was higher than the national average of 1.65 percent.
The contrasting trends between national and Jakarta data raise questions about how the capital is handling economic pressures, especially for low-income communities.
