The number of coronavirus infections in Indonesia has surpassed 50,000, an increase that is worrying experts at a time when the government is allowing businesses to resume operations amid increasing economic pressure.
The spiking case numbers in the world's fourth-most populous country align with the country's increasing testing capacity, which have averaged close to the government's daily target of 20,000 in the past week, said Achmad Yurianto, the spokesman for the National COVID-19 Task Force.
But scepticism remains over the ability of the government to conduct enough tests to determine the true spread of the virus in the country nation, which is home to more than 270 million people living on thousands of islands.
The task force said on Thursday afternoon the coronavirus had infected 50,187 people and killed at least 2,620 in Indonesia, the highest number of cases and fatalities in Southeast Asia. That is up from just two positive cases in early March.
Vendors wearing protective masks in Jakarta. Source: AAP
There are 20,449 patients who have recovered from the illness nationwide.
Since the first cases were confirmed, Indonesia has conducted fewer than 430,000 tests, according to the latest government data.
That is far from the World Health Organization's recommendation of testing one per cent to 1.5 per cent of the country's population, said Laura Navika Yamani, an epidemiology expert at the Airlangga University.
The soaring number of cases is deepening Indonesian economic gloom.
Planning Minister Suharso Monoarfa told a parliament hearing recently that up to 5.5 million Indonesians may lose their jobs because of the pandemic. He said the poverty rate was expected to rise more than a point to 10.2 per cent.
President Joko Widodo said his administration wanted Indonesia's economy back on track but safe from the virus and started the country's reopening earlier this month.
Offices, restaurants and shopping centres have reopened with only 50 per cent of their employees and customers. Public transportation also resumed services.
Many people are worried about the reopening. The government plans to enforce health rules by deploying 340,000 security personnel as the restrictions are gradually lifted through July.
