Jakarta, Nov 5 (IANS): For the first time after 22 years, Indonesia has entered recession due to the heavy coronavirus-induced impact on the country's economy, authorities said on Thursday.

According to the authorities, the country's growth fell 3.49 per cent in the third quarter of this year, compared to the same period in 2019, reports the BBC.

A fall of 5.32 per cent in the second quarter of 2020 has pushed Indonesia into a recession.

The last time there was a recession in South East Asia's biggest economy was during the 1998 Asian financial crisis.

Indonesian have predicted that 3.5 million people could lose their jobs due to the pandemic's impact.

Currently, Indonesia with more than 426,000 confirmed Covid-19 cases and 14,348 deaths, accounts for the highest infection rate in the region.

Besides agriculture, Indonesia relies heavily on its tourism sector, which has been one of the hardest hit by the pandemic not only in the country but globally due to a travel restrictions imposed all over the world.

The capital city Jakarta went into a second semi-lockdown for four weeks starting in mid-September with rising cases straining its health system.