VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The National Development Planning Board (Bappenas) has launched a national strategy on silver economy through Presidential Regulation Number 88/2021 on the National Strategy for Elderly.

A silver economy is an economy where the elderly almost dominate a nation’s market.

"Indonesia is predicted to become the country with the largest silver economy after China and Japan," Bappenas head Suharso Monoarfa said while socializing the regulation on Thursday.

Thus, it is crucial to start developing more effective, inclusive, and sustainable multi-sector policies now to prepare Indonesia for facing population aging, he added.

In 2020, the elderly population in Indonesia had reached 26.4 million, he noted.

The number is estimated to increase to 61.4 million in 2045, or about 20 to 25 percent of the total population, he pointed out.

Hence, one of the board's strategies to deal with the situation is to digitize the Elderly Information System (SILANI) to update data, service referrals, and the special management of the elderly, Monoarfa informed.

The system started collecting elderly data in seven sub-districts of Yogyakarta, Jakarta, and Bali in 2019, he said.

Bappenas has also created a website-based SILANI app, which is available for download on Android-based phones in several trial areas, he informed.

In addition to improving government services for the elderly, the app is expected to increase digital literacy for the elderly , which reached just 46.68 percent in 2020, he said.

The app digitization is also expected to facilitate the implementation of Integrated Elderly Services, so the elderly can reduce physical contact and avoid exposure to COVID-19, he added.

“Integrated Elderly Services need concrete support from local governments to be included in sustainable policies on respecting, protecting, and fulfilling the rights of the elderly,” deputy for population and employment at the board, Pungky Sumadi, said.

Under the national strategy, Bappenas is encouraging all parties to be committed to the welfare of the elderly, he added.

Meanwhile, director of poverty reduction and community empowerment at Bappenas, Maliki, said that it is necessary to improve the management of the fulfillment of elderly people's rights.

“Service digitization will give understanding to the elderly regarding their own rights and help the government in providing integrated services to them," he added. (Antaranews)

The Ministry of Women's Empowerment and Child Protection has urged ulemas of Islamic boarding schools to build commitment toward preventing female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C).

"The practice of FGM/C is a form of gender-based violence that is often carried out because it has become a doctrine or culture passed down from generation to generation in society," Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Minister Bintang Puspayoga said in a press release issued here on Wednesday.

The practice of FGM/C that has developed to this day is not based on medical indications and has not been proven to be beneficial for health, she stressed.

At the II Islamic Boarding School Ulemas Conference, ulemas discussed making recommendations for the benefit of all parties, especially women, as they are the ones affected by the practice, she informed.

According to the minister, ulemas can play a crucial role in helping eradicate FGM/C in the country as well as correcting the wrong views possessed by the community.

From the perspective of women's essential justice, there are different implications for women and men in terms of circumcision, postgraduate lecturer at the University of Al-Quran Science (PTIQ), Nur Rofiah, explained.

Physically, women have 29 potential biological impacts from having sex, from a change in the shape of the hymen to breastfeeding for two years while men only feel one effect, namely the release of sperm, she expounded.

"The concept of essential justice is crucial to be considered in order to realize the common good for both men and women," Rofiah remarked.

The II Islamic Boarding School Ulemas Conference is expected to produce more robust recommendations on building ulemas' commitment to preventing female genital mutilation/cutting. (Antaranews)

The decline in vaccination rates in the past seven weeks has been triggered by some people and local governments being picky over vaccine brands, an official from the Ministry of Health has said.

"They are delaying vaccinations waiting for a certain brand," spokesperson for COVID-19 Vaccinations for the Ministry of Health, Siti Nadia Tarmizi, confirmed here on Thursday.

Among the reasons several people are being picky about vaccine brands are hoaxes, she added.

"However, there are also some that did not receive the (right) information because they live in rural areas," she said.

Meanwhile, some regional governments are being picky because they are afraid they will not get the target recipients, she added.

She affirmed that the Ministry of Health is still waiting for vaccine supply for the second dose vaccinations to arrive in the country.

According to Tarmizi, to boost public participation in the national vaccination program, people should be educated that the best vaccines are those that are currently available. Thus, they should not be picky, she added.

She appealed to those who have not received COVID-19 shots to promptly register for vaccination to help the country reach herd immunity and move from the pandemic to endemic phase.

The spokesperson also reminded people to be careful in taking medicines for treating COVID-19 and not be easily influenced by the promotion of medicinal products, traditional medicines, and health supplements claiming to prevent or treat COVID-19.

In a bid to boost immunity against COVID-19, the Indonesian government launched a nationwide vaccination program on January 13, 2021.

According to data provided by the Health Ministry, as of November 18, 2021, nearly 132,299,729 citizens have received their first COVID-19 shot, while 86,508,226 have been fully vaccinated against the virus. (Antaranews)

Head of the COVID-19 task force at the Indonesian Medical Association (IDI), Prof. Zubairi Djoerban, has assured that the booster or third COVID-19 vaccine is safe, just like the first and second doses.

"Booster vaccine is safe to be administered to older adults like me, who are almost 75 years and have comorbidities. I have diabetes, high blood pressure, and have had heart surgery," he said at the Merdeka Barat 9 Forum (FMB 9) themed 'Booster Vaccine for a Healthier Indonesia', accessed from here on Thursday.

The third dose needs to be administered, considering that a number of countries with high complete vaccination percentages are still experiencing an increase in COVID-19 cases, he added.

"Countries that have fully vaccinated many of their citizens are now experiencing an increase in COVID-19 cases. Therefore, a booster vaccine is essential," Djoerban explained.

Booster vaccinations can be conducted using the remaining available vaccines in the country and can be provided to residents six months after they receive the second dose, he said.

The booster vaccine could be the same brand as in the previous two doses or a different one, Djoerban added.

At the same forum, vaccinologist Sukamto Koesno said there will be a time when the immunity that the vaccine has bolstered will decrease.

Therefore, it is vital to give a booster in the hope that the antibodies that have decreased can increase again with the help of a booster vaccine, he added.

Meanwhile, deputy chairman of Commission IX of the House of Representatives, Melki Laka Lena, said that a booster vaccine is vital since no vaccine has optimal antibodies to protect people from the virus, especially when new COVID-19 variants emerge.

According to data provided by the Health Ministry, as of November 18, 2021, nearly 1,198,599 health workers in the country have received their third COVID-19 vaccine dose. (Antaranews)