VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Mar. 5 - The Indonesian government is open to cooperating with national private companies for producing and distributing the Red and White COVID-19 vaccine, which is currently under development, according to the COVID-19 Response Task Force.

"The opportunities to cooperate with national private companies are now open as wide as possible, under the coordination of the government, to allow the downstream industry to increase production capacity, facilitate pre-clinical processes and clinical trials and expand the targeted market," coordinator of the expert team and government spokesperson for COVID-19 handling, Wiku Adisasmito, said in Jakarta on Thursday.

He said the Eijkman Institute for Molecular Biology, in collaboration with non-ministerial government institutions and several state-owned institutes of higher learning, is in the process of conducting research for the development of the Red and White vaccine, named after the Indonesian flag.

The involvement of private companies will accelerate the attainment of vaccine production target, Adisasmito said.

"(The involvement of private firms) will not only ensure the fulfillment of vaccine needs but also serve as potential for Indonesia in the future. It will play an active role in attaining global health security for countries that have access to COVID-19 vaccines," he added.

Meanwhile, Minister of Research and Technology, Bambang PS Brodjonegoro, said the activities related to the research and development of the Red and White vaccine have reached 100 percent on the laboratory scale.

“According to the plan, in March, 2021, maybe late March, we will begin to hand over vaccine seeds to state-owned pharmaceutical firm Bio Farma so the laboratory phase has been 100 percent completed," he informed.

Bambang said the Eijkman Institute has set itself the target of submitting vaccine seeds, developed using a recombinant protein subunit platform, to PT Bio Farma in March this year.

After receiving the vaccine seeds, Bio Farma must conduct the optimization and purification process to clean the vaccine seeds and later carry out clinical trials, he added.

After a series of clinical trials have been completed and the vaccine secures emergency-use authorization from the Drug and Food Control Agency (BPOM), mass production will begin, he informed. (Antaranews)

Mar. 5 - The COVID-19 vaccine that is currently being used in Indonesia is effective against the B1.1.7 variant, which is associated with an increased risk of transmission, the government has said.

"The government assures that the COVID-19 vaccine currently used in Indonesia is still effective in fighting the COVID-19 mutation from England, known as B1.1.7. For this reason, we ask the public not to worry about the impact of the entry of the B1.1.7 coronavirus variant on the efficacy of the vaccine," coordinator of the expert team and government spokesperson for COVID-19 handling, Wiku Adisasmito, said in Jakarta on Thursday.

The government had earlier confirmed the mutation of the B1.1.7 variant had been detected in Indonesia, exactly a year from when it announced its first positive cases.

According to available literature and global developments in the handling of the coronavirus, the new variant B1.1.7 is reportedly up to 70 percent more infectious compared to the initial variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus found in Wuhan, China, Adisasmito said.

However, it should be noted that the emergence of a new variant of the coronavirus is common during a pandemic, he added. Viruses can continue to mutate along with a high rate of transmission in the community, he continued.

"Therefore, I ask the public not to worry too much about the new variant. Researchers across the world, including Indonesia, continue to carry out research on COVID-19 and its mutations," he said.

This situation will be a challenge for researchers to develop analytical epidemiological studies, he added.

The government responded quickly after the new variant was detected as Indonesia has not yet emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic, he said.

"Along with the potential for this virus to mutate, researchers will continue to carry out further research on what new mutations and variants have emerged so that we understand what the implications of these variants are and of course the solutions to deal with them," he added.

In addition to waiting for the results of research, the public must continue to implement strict health protocols by wearing masks, washing hands regularly, staying away from crowds, and reducing mobility if it is not important, he said. (Antaranews)

Mar. 5 - The government is planning to establish a bullion bank to manage the precious metal, considering Indonesia has one of the largest gold mines in the world, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto, said.

"We have a big mine and the government is studying the plan to establish a bullion bank," Hartarto said during a working meeting of the Trade Ministry here on Thursday.

Indonesia’s gold imports remain high amid an increase in the price of the commodity, despite the presence of the gold mine, he pointed out.

"This indicates there is something we need to evaluate regarding gold exports and imports," Hartarto said.

With Indonesia's gold and granule exports increasing to US$5,280 million in 2020, the minister said he is optimistic that the development of a bullion bank would benefit the country.

Citing the benefits of a bullion bank, he said, it would save the state's foreign exchange, provide a funding resource for industry, product diversification for banks, and the public would get returns from gold savings.

The Grasberg mine in Papua is the second largest gold mine in the world after the South Deep Gold Mine in South Africa and has 30.2 million ounces of gold reserves, the minister noted.

Indonesia is the seventh largest gold producer in the world, with production in 2020 reaching 130 tons, or 4.59 million ounces a year.

Indonesia's PT ANTAM, a junior gold mining company, produced 1.7 tons of gold in 2020.

Gold consumption in Indonesia remains relatively low, with about 172,800 ounces used in retail investment and 137,600 ounces used in making jewelry.

Trade Minister Muhammad Lutfi has assured the ministry will continue to mull on establishing a bullion bank by taking into account various aspects, including its effectiveness in controlling the gold market. (Antaranews)

Mar. 5 - Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin confirmed he will collaborate with the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) and National Police (Polri) to fast-track the implementation of COVID-19 vaccination.

"Currently, we have started (collaborating) with the private sector and this week with institutions and ministries. We are also collaborating with the TNI-Polri," he remarked while speaking during a productive dialog themed "Digitalization of Vaccination Acceleration" on Thursday.

The TNI and Polri have several healthcare workers that can be empowered to administer vaccine injections. However, the current requirement is locations for the vaccination.

"We invite all TNI (members) to function as vaccinators, as what is required now is people that can inject vaccines," he pointed out.

The Ministry of Health had earlier collaborated with the Halodoc and Gojek start-ups for the implementation of vaccinations, particularly to offer the COVID-19 Vaccination Service Post through a drive-through mechanism.

The government is currently continuing to accelerate vaccination by synergizing with various parties.

Vaccination campaigns have been conducted at various locations, including schools and sports buildings, by offering a drive-through mechanism especially to facilitate elderly people and to also prevent crowds.

Sadikin pointed to the limited number of vaccines posing the main challenge to the vaccination process. The issue has become a hot topic worldwide, and several countries have yet to commence vaccination.

"Our target is that vaccinations are completed in one year. In the first six months, only 90 million doses of vaccine were available for 45 million Indonesians," he remarked.

In the following six months, some 140 million people must be vaccinated. "This necessitates synergy with various parties since the Ministry of Health cannot do it alone," he stated. (Antaranews)