VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Arrival of 1.2 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine produced by Chinese firm Sinovac in Indonesia will boost public confidence and security and dispel current uncertainty, the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) stated.

"Alhamdulillah (thank God), of course, we welcome (the vaccine), because in 2021, the gamechangers would be first, the (COVID-19) vaccine and second, the job creation law," Kadin Chief Rosan Roeslani stated here on Monday.

Availability of the COVID-19 vaccine will encourage people to resume their activities and spending, thereby boosting demand, he pointed out.

"We laud the government's fast response, and (arrival of the vaccine) will offer a sense of certainty. Hopefully, it would also boost the health sector and bring about economic recovery," he remarked, adding that the vaccine will be distributed in January 2021 after undergoing some procedures by the National Drug and Food Monitoring Agency (BPOM).

As many as 1.2 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine manufactured by Chinese pharmaceutical firm Sinovac arrived at the Soekarno-Hatta Airport in Tangerang, Banten, on Sunday (Dec 6) at 9:25 p.m. western Indonesian time (WIB).

The vaccine was transported aboard Garuda Indonesia's special cargo plane Boeing 777-300 EA on the Jakarta-Beijing-Jakarta route.

Some 15 million additional doses of the vaccine will arrive later in December and 30 million doses in January in bulk raw material to then be processed by state-run pharmaceutical firm PT Bio Farma. (Antaranews)