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LIFELINE
Eid al-Fitr is the most important festival in Indonesia, where nearly 90% of its 260 million population are Muslim.
The festival is celebrated with feasts and new clothes, and characterised by a spike in remittances sent by millions of labourers who work overseas in building, plantations and factories.
Migrant workers sent $11.44 billion back to Indonesia in 2019, up from $8.35 billion in 2014, mostly from countries in Asia and the Middle East, Indonesia's Central Bank figures show.
"Remittances are important for Indonesian families to support their basic needs like food, housing and education," said Pingkan Audrine, a researcher at the Center for Indonesian Policy Studies, a Jakarta-based think-tank.
"Some of their relatives have also used the money to start small business such as the warung (roadside kiosks), so their family in the village can earn an income," she added.
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The World Bank says global remittances are set to fall by about 20% - or $100 billion - this year, about four times more of a drop than during the 2009 financial crisis.
Such a loss would cut a crucial lifeline for many families, as one in nine people globally benefitted from international remittances in 2019, according to the United Nations.
More than 100,000 Indonesians have returned home since the start of the coronavirus crisis, local media reported, and with little work around, they are now the ones who need help.
"(Instead of sending money home), many migrant workers are asking their family for money," said Maizidah Salas, a coordinator at the non-profit Indonesian Migrant Workers' Union.
"This will certainly be the saddest Eid for migrant workers and their family members," she added.
