VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

President Joko Widodo has said he hopes the government's wage subsidy program for low-income workers increases purchasing power, boosts household consumption and encourages economic growth.

"We hope that once again with this assistance, household consumption will not be disturbed, people's purchasing power will increase, and we hope that our country's economic growth will return to its normal position. Those are what (the outcomes) we want," he said at the State Palace in Jakarta on Thursday.

The President made the remarks while symbolically handing over salary subsidies to 15 representatives of subsidy recipients, who include honorary teachers, honorary firefighters, hotel employees, nurses, and cleaners.

The government will provide a salary subsidy of Rp600,000 per month for four months, or a total of Rp2.4 million, to 15,725,232 private workers and temporary employees of government agencies, who are earning less than Rp5 million per month as wages, and who registered for the BPJS manpower insurance program by 30 June, 2020.

The distribution of subsidies is being carried out twice, with Rp1.2 million disbursed in each round.

In the first phase, salary subsidies were channeled through state-owned banks to 2.5 million workers whose data had been verified.

At the launch of the salary subsidy program, the President chatted with several aid workers who qualified for the aid.

On the occasion, the President stated that the COVID-19 vaccine is expected to be produced in December 2020 or January 2021.

He said he was hopeful that the vaccination would help resolve the pandemic problem. "And God Willing, we will return to our normalcy," Jokowi remarked.  (ANTARA)

Indonesia, on Thursday, recorded 3,166 patients recovering from COVID-19 within the last 24 hours, thereby bringing the recovery tally to 118,575, according to the country's Task Force for COVID-19 Response.

The country also witnessed the addition of 2,719 fresh cases, bringing the tally to 162,884 cases so far.

Meanwhile, the death toll had reached 7,064, with 120 succumbing to the disease within the last 24 hours.

On Thursday, Jakarta recorded 1,538 recoveries, 760 confirmed cases, and 11 deaths.

East Java Province reported 341 new recoveries, 367 fresh confirmed cases, and 30 dead; followed by Central Java, with 215 recoveries, 252 confirmed cases, and 33 dead; and South Kalimantan, with 184 recoveries, 39 confirmed cases, and two deaths.

Moreover, on Thursday, in North Sumatra, 117 people recovered from COVID-19, 104 individuals tested positive for the virus, and six people died of the disease.

South Sulawesi recorded 93 new recoveries, 42 confirmed cases, and six dead.

West Java recorded 86 recoveries, while 154 others contracted the virus, though no one had died of the disease.

Furthermore, seven provinces reported below 10 new cases. Three provinces -- Bangka Belitung, North Kalimantan, and Central Sulawesi -- today reported no fresh cases.

The COVID-19 Task Force also recorded 76,201 suspected cases in 485 districts and cities in 34 provinces.

Meanwhile, 29,663 specimens were examined within the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of specimens examined using both the real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and molecular rapid test (TCM) methods to 2,136,416. (ANTARA)

BKPM head Bahlil Lahadalia during a working meeting with Commission VI of the House of Representatives in Jakarta on Thursday (August 27, 2020). (ANTARA FOTO/Puspa Perwitasari/nz) 

The Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) is aiming to realize budget absorption of above 95 percent by the end of 2020.

As of August 24 this year, BKPM’s budget realization had reached 47.8 percent.

"God willing, by the end of December, our (budget absorption) target is above 95 percent," BKPM head Bahlil Lahadalia said at a working meeting with Commission VI of the House of Representatives in Jakarta on Thursday.

Bahlil explained that for 2020, BKPM's budget ceiling has been set at Rp524.41 billion. The realization of budget absorption as of August 24, 2020 was Rp251.05 billion (47.8 percent).

Meanwhile, the realization of the BKPM budget throughout 2019 was recorded at Rp597.12 billion, or 93.21 percent of the ceiling of Rp640.60 billion.

"What has not been realized is only the remaining of the tender and some of our representatives whose salaries have been lowered because their performance has not been productive in several countries," he said.

Bahlil said he was optimistic of achieving a high budget absorption as the BKPM budget absorption trend has remained quite high during the last five years (2015-2019).

In the last five years, the realization of the BKPM budget has been 90 percent; 89.5 percent; 93.1 percent; 87.68 percent; and 93.21 percent, he added.

"This means that as time goes on, the realization of the BKPM budget is getting higher. So, it is important to supply additional budgets as well," he said.

Even though the investment realization target continues to increase every year, the budget allocated from year to year fluctuates. In 2015, BKPM received a budget allocation of Rp635 billion, in 2016 the budget fell to Rp488 billion. A year later, in 2017, the budget again fell to Rp470 billion.

In 2018, there was an increase to Rp548 billion, and in 2019, the budget was Rp640 billion. Meanwhile, in 2020, the budget ceiling has been set at Rp524.41 billion. (ANTARA)

Chief of the Committee for COVID-19 Handling and National Economic Recovery, Erick Thohir, said he believed 15 million Indonesians will receive 30 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine at the end of 2020 if clinical trials for the vaccine run well.

"If one person needs two doses, then some 15 million people will be vaccinated at the end of 2020," he said at a working meeting with Commission IX of the House of Representatives (DPR) in Jakarta on Thursday.

The 30 million doses of vaccine will be produced and procured in 2020 through cooperation with Sinovac of China and G42 of the United Arab Emirates.

The two types of vaccines will be administered at an interval of two weeks under a doubling dose regimen.

Thohir, who is also the state-owned enterprises minister, said the vaccines can be used if they do well in clinical trials conducted by the two companies.

Sinovac has committed to supplying raw materials for the production of 20 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine by the end of 2020 and for 250 million doses in 2021, with a 10-percent overfill, he informed.

Meanwhile, G42 has also committed to supplying 10 million doses of the vaccine in December, 2020, and another 50 million doses in the first quarter of 2021 to Indonesia.

According to the latest information, the vaccine would be administered to people aged between 18 and 59 years. At present, the vaccine is being developed for people aged less than 18 years.

In addition to Sinovac and G42, the Indonesian government is also exploring the possibility of cooperating with other vaccine producers such as AstraZeneca of Europe, besides the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation of the US.

Indonesia is also determined to develop its Red and White COVID-19 vaccine on its own, the minister said.

Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi had stated earlier that China and the United Arab Emirates have assured they would supply 290 million to 340 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to Indonesia by the end of 2021.

Last week, Marsudi and Thohir paid visits to China and the United Arab Emirates as part of efforts to secure COVID-19 vaccine supplies.  (ANTARA)