VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Indonesia received 12,505 oxygen concentrators and six thousand nasal cannulas arranged by Indonesian and Singaporean companies from Singapore on Thursday to support its COVID-19 fight.

Indonesian Ambassador to Singapore, Suryo Pratomo, as well as representatives from Indonesian and Singaporean companies attended the assistance handover ceremony at the Indonesian Embassy in Singapore.

The handover of assistance was also attended virtually by secretary general of the Indonesian Foreign Affairs Ministry Cecep Herawan, head of the Indonesian Health Ministry's Health Crisis Center Eka Jusup Singka, and the Indonesian Consulate General for Shanghai, Deny Kurnia.

Herawan said that collaboration and cooperation with various parties is a significant solution to free Indonesia from the pandemic.

"To flatten the curve (of COVID-19 cases), we need not only the role of the state, but also the role of business people, academics, community leaders, and also the media," he remarked.

He said the collaboration is expected to further strengthen the close and cooperative relationship between Indonesia and Singapore, in line with the spirit of the month of independence for Indonesia and Singapore, which falls in August.

Meanwhile, Health Crisis Center head Singka said that most of the assistance that had arrived in Indonesia had been distributed.

Further aid distribution will focus on areas outside Java and Bali, which are currently reported to have experienced a significant increase in COVID-19 cases, he added.

The donations are expected to help Indonesia free itself from the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, he said.

The same expectation was also expressed by representatives from Indonesian and Singaporean companies that provided the assistance.

Chairperson of the Bakti Barito Foundation, Fifi Setiawaty, said that the collaboration not only showed the companies' solidarity as a business player, but also reflected a strong people-to-people relationship.

Meanwhile, DBS Bank Group chief information and head of technology & operations, Jimmy Ng, emphasized the importance of cooperation in the midst of the pandemic.

"If you want to go fast, just go alone, but if you want to go far, then we must walk together," Ng said.

Meanwhile, the companies involved in providing the assistance include Bakti Barito Foundation, DBS Bank, PT Cikarang Listrindo, PT Dharma Satya Nusantara, East Ventures, Indies Capital Partners Pte Ltd, PT Kino Indonesia Tbk, Sinarmas, Tanoto Foundation, PT TBS Energi Utama Tbk, Triputra Group, UID Foundation, Wahanan Artha, CapitaLand Hope Foundation, COMO Foundation, GrabTaxi Holdings Pte Ltd, Hotel Properties, Singtel, and Temasek Foundation. (Antaranews)