VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

President Director of BPJS Health insurance Ali Ghufron presents his remarks during a webinar session on the 3rd Arogya Manthan hosted by the India's National Health Authority, Sept 24, 2021. (ANTARA/HO-BPJS Kesehatan) - 

State-owned health insurance provider BPJS Health shared its experiences with the Indian health care authority to achieve universal health care  (UHC) by developing the National Health Insurance (JKN-KIS) Program.

"Our national long-term development plan (RPJMN) has targeted 98-percent health care coverage to our population," BPJS Health President Director Ali Ghufron noted in his written statement received here, Friday.

Ghufron made the statement while representing Indonesia during a webinar session on the roadmap of India's universal health coverage hosted by the National Health Authority of India, Thursday (Sept 23).

He informed that the number of participants in the health care plan totaled 226.3 million, or some 83.5 percent of the total Indonesian population, as of September 17, 2021. The membership continues to increase at a faster pace as compared to other countries, with a similar  health insurance system in place, he pointed out.

Apart from being the fourth most populated country, Indonesia's population is scattered across thousands of Indonesian islands that adds to the complexity of achieving complete UHC coverage, Ghufron noted.

"Despite all this, we could see the finish line in achieving our target. We still need to collaborate with the government, medical officers, health care providers, and the residents to expand the coverage," the president director stated.

Ghufron noted that the JKN-KIS program had improved its services based on its four main values: universality, access, quality service, and financial ease.

Universality, the first value, in essence, mandates the BPJS Kesehatan to achieve complete coverage for the benefit of the Indonesian population.

BPJS Kesehatan has also succeeded in improving its second value, access. According to the Health Policy Plus 2018 data, the use of outpatient and inpatient services among Indonesians continues to increase since the authority commenced the JKN-KIS program in 2014, Ghufron noted.

"The third value is quality health care services. Reviewing our program's satisfaction index, we have seen the index continues to increase. In 2014, we recorded our satisfaction index at 78.6 percent, while in 2020, we have improved the index to 81.5 percent," he informed.

Based on the University of Indonesia's Institute for Economy and Social Research (LPEM FEB UI) data, the JKN-KIS program prevented 8.1 million people from the clutches of poverty and secured 1.6 million poor from further poverty due to health issues. The LPEM FEB UI data is proof that the program has defended its fourth value to ensure financial ease, Ghufron stated.

"We admit improvements to the JKN-KIS system should continue, but we are confident that implementation of the program is already on the right track to achieve complete universal health coverage in Indonesia," he added//ANT

Presidential Special Staff Angkie Yudistia (in the middle). (ANTARA/Naufal Fikri Yusuf) - 

The Indonesian government has continued to push and encourage COVID-19 vaccinations for people with disabilities in a bid to achieve herd immunity against the virus, Presidential Special Staff Angkie Yudistia stated.

"(This is to ensure that) no citizen is left behind in the nation's COVID-19 vaccination program. In a bid to achieve herd immunity, the government keeps pushing vaccinations for persons with disabilities," Yudistia noted here, Thursday.

According to the Presidential Special Staff, for the national COVID-19 vaccination program, President Joko Widodo has received 450 thousand doses of the Sinopharm vaccine from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) through its president.

"Our target is to administer the Sinopharm vaccines to 225 thousand persons with disabilities in the six provinces comprising West Java, Central Java, East Java, Yogyakarta, and Bali. Meanwhile, for other persons with disabilities (outside the quota of 225 thousand vaccines), they will receive vaccines from other brands that are available at community health centers or other health facilities," she expounded.

Yudistia remarked that the first-dose vaccination for people with disabilities had reached 94 percent of the target recipients.

"The figure shows that we are getting closer to the target. Second-dose vaccinations are also still ongoing," she noted.

On the occasion, Yudistia remarked that in addition to access to COVID-19 vaccination, people with disabilities also get access to education since it is a basic need.

According to Yudistia, the central government continues to innovate through the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology and the Ministry of Youth and Sports to provide Focus Group Discussions that discuss the provision of inclusive schools for persons with disabilities.

"Currently, the Ministry of Education continues to finalize a derivative regulation from the Government Regulation on proper accommodation for students, so that this regulation become a derivative regulation that can reach persons with disabilities," the special staff explained//ANT

Webinar, "The Indonesian Writing Movement": Creative in the Era of the Pandemic, which was held online, Friday, (9/24/2021) - 

The ratio of books to population in Indonesia according to a study conducted by the National Library is 1: 90. This means that 90 people attend one book. UNESCO itself has set the ideal standard of one person reading three books. This disparity can continue to gape if the problem is limited to reading culture.

Literacy activists, including writers and regional reading ambassadors, are asked to have the courage to work through writing so that the gap in the ratio of books is slowly resolved. Many parties are too preoccupied with reading culture. Continue to campaign in that phase. In fact, civilization must move forward. When you are used to reading, then start learning to write.

“Friends of literacy activists, local writers and regional reading ambassadors are actually the driving force of writing literacy considering that there are not many best-selling writers in Indonesia. So, there needs to be regeneration," said Indonesian Reading Ambassador Gol A Gong at the Indonesian Reading Ambassador Webinar, "The Indonesian Writing Movement": Creative in the Era of the Pandemic, which was held online, Friday, (9/24/2021).

Gol A Gong also highlighted the lack of action taken by regional reading ambassadors who produced very few written works because not many had writing skills. So, don't take the writing culture lightly.

The author and founder of the Benny Institute, Benny Arnas, said the same thing. When the regional reading ambassadors are campaigning, apart from having knowledge and motivation from many books, they must at least be accompanied by the ability to write. "The writing movement is a jumping movement," added Beni.

Instead, Beni sees the Covid-19 pandemic as a luxurious condition that is coveted for book lovers and writing activists. The pandemic is the perfect time to lay down. This activity is desired by many readers/writers.

Meanwhile, CEO of Epigraph Book Publishers Daniel Mahendra added that the issue of writing is also crucial. Daniel met many potential book readers but didn't know how to start. No way of communicating with publishers.

The condition of the imbalance between the ratio of books to the population has attracted the attention of the National Library. All breakthroughs/innovations in collaboration with the Indonesian Reading Ambassador are prepared by National Library so that the writing literacy of the community can develop.

“Strengthening the literacy ecosystem is not enough with reading capital. By cooperating with the Reading Ambassador as a role model, the National Library of Indonesia hopes that the collaboration of the writing culture strengthening program carried out with the reading ambassador and literacy activists will inspire the public," added the Head of the Center for Library Analysis and Reading Culture Development of the National Library of Indonesia, Adin Bondar.

The issue of the low book-to-population ratio is included in the discussion in the 2020-2024 Short Medium Term Development Plan (RPJMN). In the action plan, strengthening literacy culture can be done by developing a reading culture, strengthening the book system, and literacy content, as well as increasing access to libraries based on social inclusion.

The National Library of Indonesia promises to continue to collaborate and fight so that literacy issues are resolved properly. All parties have agreed that a good literacy culture will lead Indonesia to become a superior nation in 2045, right at the age of a century of independence//VOI-NK

More than half of Australia's adult population were fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as of Friday, authorities said, as they step up inoculations in hopes of easing restrictions while cases linger near daily record levels in Victoria.

Australia is grappling with a third wave of infections from the highly infectious Delta variant that has led to lockdowns in its two largest cities, Sydney and Melbourne, and the capital, Canberra, affecting nearly half the country's 25 million people.

These tough curbs and a decision to shut construction sites for two weeks over the rapid spread of the virus among workers triggered anti-lockdown protests in Melbourne, Australia's second-largest city, during the week. read more

Police arrested more than 200 on Friday for theft, drug offences and breaching stay-at-home orders, authorities said, as small groups of protesters gathered throughout the afternoon at various locations.

As most of Australia's southeast remains under strict stay-at-home restrictions, virus-free Western Australia is gearing up to host the Australian Rules Football Grand Final for the first time, in front of 60,000 fans at Perth Stadium on Saturday.

Melbourne, which had hosted every Grand Final since 1898, was the sport's spiritual home until the pandemic forced a shift to Brisbane last year.

Victoria on Friday reported one new death and 733 new infections, its second biggest daily rise in the pandemic, down from the record high of 766 on Thursday. Most cases were detected in Melbourne.

Both New South Wales (NSW) and Victorian leaders have pledged more freedom to residents once full vaccinations in people older than 16 reach 70%, expected next month. So far, 57% have been fully vaccinated in NSW, above the national average of 50.1%. Two million doses were administered in country in the last seven days.

Daily cases may have stabilised in NSW, the epicentre of the country's worst outbreak, as it reported 1,043 new infections, down from 1,063 on Thursday.

"We are seeing pleasing declines ... hopefully we will see numbers decrease in coming days and weeks," state Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant said during a media briefing in Sydney.

But officials flagged any easing of curbs in NSW would be done "cautiously and moderately" when the state hits its 70% dual-dose target, around Oct. 6, to avoid spikes in cases that could overwhelm its health systems.

Even with the fast-moving Delta outbreak, Australia has largely avoided high numbers seen in many comparable countries, with some 94,000 cases and 1,208 deaths, and the death rate is lower than last year because of higher vaccination rates. (Reuters)