Jakarta’s businesses open after two months in lockdown
In Indonesia’s capital Jakarta, offices, restaurants and shops were allowed to reopen on June 8 as coronavirus restrictions were eased further, but only allowing 50 per cent of staff and customers.
The reopening comes despite the country posted its biggest daily spike in coronavirus infections just two days earlier, but needs to kick its economy into gear to avoid further havoc on business dynamics and employment.
All worship facilities, including mosques, were also allowed to reopen at half of their capacity and with social-distancing requirements in place. Transport services, including Grab and Gojek, have also resumed.
However, schools are remaining closed during this month’s transition phase to the so-called “new normal,” while selected shopping centers, zoos and beaches will reopen in the second later in June.
Jakarta, home to eleven million people, had been under large-scale social restrictions since April 10. The city, epicenter of the nation’s virus outbreak, switched to a month-long transition phase from a partial lockdown as it saw the rate of infections falling below the threshold seen as safe to resume limited activities, according to Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan.
Reopening to foreign tourism in September
The decision to ease restrictions in Jakarta, also the financial hub and an engine of growth for the Indonesian economy, followed a similar move in parts of more than 100 cities in the country labeled as “green zones.” The government has separately announced it may reopen the nation to domestic holidaymakers by the end of July and to foreign tourism in September.
Social distancing measures put in place to counter the spread of Covid-19 in Jakarta and elsewhere in Indonesia have weighed heavily on the economy, contributing to massive job losses. Indonesia’s GDP is expected to miss a revised estimate for growth for this year of 2.3 per cent with the possibility of a contraction of 0.4 per cent under a worst-case scenario, Bloomberg News cited official estimates.
As of June 8, Indonesia counted 32,033 coronavirus infections, with 1,883 deaths and 10,904 recovered cases.
In Indonesia’s capital Jakarta, offices, restaurants and shops were allowed to reopen on June 8 as coronavirus restrictions were eased further, but only allowing 50 per cent of staff and customers. The reopening comes despite the country posted its biggest daily spike in coronavirus infections just two days earlier, but needs to kick its economy into gear to avoid further havoc on business dynamics and employment. All worship facilities, including mosques, were also allowed to reopen at half of their capacity and with social-distancing requirements in place. Transport services, including Grab and Gojek, have also resumed. However, schools are remaining...
In Indonesia’s capital Jakarta, offices, restaurants and shops were allowed to reopen on June 8 as coronavirus restrictions were eased further, but only allowing 50 per cent of staff and customers.
The reopening comes despite the country posted its biggest daily spike in coronavirus infections just two days earlier, but needs to kick its economy into gear to avoid further havoc on business dynamics and employment.
All worship facilities, including mosques, were also allowed to reopen at half of their capacity and with social-distancing requirements in place. Transport services, including Grab and Gojek, have also resumed.
However, schools are remaining closed during this month’s transition phase to the so-called “new normal,” while selected shopping centers, zoos and beaches will reopen in the second later in June.
Jakarta, home to eleven million people, had been under large-scale social restrictions since April 10. The city, epicenter of the nation’s virus outbreak, switched to a month-long transition phase from a partial lockdown as it saw the rate of infections falling below the threshold seen as safe to resume limited activities, according to Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan.
Reopening to foreign tourism in September
The decision to ease restrictions in Jakarta, also the financial hub and an engine of growth for the Indonesian economy, followed a similar move in parts of more than 100 cities in the country labeled as “green zones.” The government has separately announced it may reopen the nation to domestic holidaymakers by the end of July and to foreign tourism in September.
Social distancing measures put in place to counter the spread of Covid-19 in Jakarta and elsewhere in Indonesia have weighed heavily on the economy, contributing to massive job losses. Indonesia’s GDP is expected to miss a revised estimate for growth for this year of 2.3 per cent with the possibility of a contraction of 0.4 per cent under a worst-case scenario, Bloomberg News cited official estimates.
As of June 8, Indonesia counted 32,033 coronavirus infections, with 1,883 deaths and 10,904 recovered cases.
