VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Indonesia will receive an additional 331.6 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine from August to December 2021, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has said.

"We will also get a total of 331,675 thousand vaccine doses throughout August to December 2021, with details of 258,675 thousand vaccines, which have been fixed, and 73 million others, which are unfixed or waiting for further developments," Widodo informed at the virtual XXI ISEI Congress and 2021 National Seminar, monitored here on Tuesday.

The President said the government will continue to accelerate COVID-19 vaccinations to meet the target of achieving community immunity, or herd immunity.

Currently, he said, as many as 61.5 million or 29.5 percent of Indonesians have received the first vaccine jab and 34.8 million or 16.7 percent of the people have received the second shot, or have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

The number of COVID-19 cases in Indonesia have also continued to decline, he noted. In the last two weeks, COVID-19 cases in Indonesia have passed the peak of transmission, and the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 has dropped by a significant 86.9 percent, he said.

The recovery rate is also higher when compared to the addition of confirmed positive cases, he added.

"Thank God, Indonesia's COVID-19 cases have passed their peak and have fallen significantly in the last 2 weeks. The national BOR (bed occupancy rate in hospitals) has decreased by 27 percent," Widodo said.

However, the President urged Indonesians not to be negligent even though the transmission of COVID-19 has decreased. He appealed to the public to remain vigilant and continue to be disciplined in following the health protocols, namely wearing masks, washing hands, and maintaining distance.

"Availability of antiviral drugs and oxygen also remains a priority. We continue to distribute vitamin and drug packages for people undergoing self-isolation to all regions," the President said. (antaranews)