VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Head of the National Standardization Agency (BSN) Kukuh S. Achmad while opening the 2021 National Quality Month (BMN) in Bandung, West Java, on Wednesday (November 3, 2021). (ANTARA/HO-BSN Public Relations) - 

The National Standardization Agency (BSN) is readying to host the 2022 International Standards Summit scheduled to be attended by all standardization agencies of G20 member nations.

"This event offers an opportunity to showcase the Indonesian government's commitment to the world in terms of facilitating good regulation in order to protect the people and increase competitiveness in the business world," BSN Head Kukuh S. Achmad told ANTARA here on Friday.

Achmad highlighted the importance of hosting the International Standards Summit in 2022 for Indonesia to demonstrate a strong commitment to utilizing standards for shielding the community and improving the drive in the business world.

According to the BSN head, a better quality of standard is a key element in global trade and realizing the international standard by looking at conditions of all G20 member countries is also imminent.

He expressed optimism that the international standard can be a tool for boosting trade transactions between G20 countries.

At the 2022 International Standards Summit, several topics regarding standardization on health aspects and economic recovery will be discussed in accordance with the G20 theme of "Recover Together, Recover Stronger," he pointed out.

Indonesia has garnered the trust to assume the G20 Presidency from December 1, 2021, to November 30, 2022.

Bearing the theme "Recover Together, Recover Stronger," the Indonesian G20 Presidency pushes for collective efforts for global health architecture, economic transformation through digitalization, and transition to sustainable energy.

The G20 members comprise the United States, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Germany, Canada, Mexico, Republic of Korea, Russia, South Africa, France, China, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the European Union.

Meanwhile, BSN is tasked with facilitating stakeholders in developing and maintaining the Indonesian National Standard (SNI). It is also actively involved in international events, such as ISO and IEC, according to its official website//ANT

Residents visiting the Jakarta International Stadium in North Jakarta on Friday (Jan 14, 2022). ANTARA/Ricky Prayoga - 

The Jakarta government-owned property company PT Jakarta Propertindo has decided to open the Jakarta International Stadium to the public to enable visitors to enjoy a first-hand experience of the new stadium in North Jakarta.

"We will open the stadium for the public, and we expect this to continue until March 2022," the company's project manager for the Jakarta International Stadium, Arry Wibowo, stated at the stadium ground in North Jakarta on Friday.

Wibowo confirmed that the facility will be open to the public until March 26, 2022, and the stadium's tour will be conducted according to time slots to maintain a cap on the visitor numbers at one time.

The visitors' restriction is deemed necessary due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and construction at some parts of the stadium is yet unfinished, he remarked.

"We will divide the public tour into time slots to allow more residents to enjoy the new stadium, and we will first invite residents living closer to the stadium before opening the door to other residents. We are optimistic that the residents would visit and enjoy the new stadium," the project manager stated.

Despite the plan to open the stadium, constructed in line with the FIFA standard for international stadiums, to the public, Wibowo clarified that not all locations at the stadium will be accessible to the public.

Visitors will only be allowed to visit areas designated as green zones where wearing personal protective equipment prior to entry is not required, while areas demarcated as red zones -- where wearing personal protective equipment is required -- will not be opened for the public, Wibowo stated.

The Jakarta government is ready to conduct the soft launch of the Jakarta International Stadium in February 2022, as the progress in construction had reached 93.8 percent this month, he added//ANT

President Jokowi talks with farmers during the inauguration of Bintang Bano Dam in West Sumbawa, West Nusa Tenggara, Friday (January 14, 2022). (ANTARA/HO-Press Bureau of the Presidential Secretariat/KT) - 

Farmers were grateful for the 256-hectare Bintang Bano Dam that was recently inaugurated by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) in West Sumbawa District, West Nusa Tenggara, on Friday.

According to the Press Bureau of the Presidential Secretariat, farmers around the dam were appreciative of the Bintang Bano Dam that can irrigate 6,700 hectares of paddy field.

One of the farmers in Moteng Village, Ahyar Rosadi, stated that irrigation canals from the dam can be used to open new lands for agriculture.

"We can use the irrigation channels of Bintang Bano Dam to open new agricultural land," he noted.

According to Rosadi, the farmers there earlier relied on rainwater for irrigation, or known as the rain-fed farming.

Moreover, based on the farmers' experiences, Bintang Bano Dam can reduce floods in Moteng Village. Rosadi admitted that since the dam became operational, no incidents of flooding occurred in the last two years.

"Once in 2018, the harvested rice was ready to be pounded, but heavy rains occurred and washed away (the harvested rice). The farmers were disappointed and suffered heavy losses at that time. However, Alhamdulillah (Thank God), due to the dam, recently, our village has not been flooded in the last two years," he expounded.

Sangkot Rangkuti, another farmer in Bangkot Monteh Village, pointed out that the new dam yields concrete results in tacking flood problems.

"Before the (existence of) Bintang Bano Dam, our village until the Taliwang area were (often) flooded. However, now, no floods again occur," Rangkuti elaborated.

"We hope that Mr. President can also pay attention to assistance for farmers, such as fertilizers, as they are hard to find. It is especially after this dam, we will (strive to boost the harvesting period to) thrice a year," Rangkuti stated//ANT

Illustration for telemedicine. (ANTARA/HO-Pexel) - 

The government has cooperated with telemedicine platforms and increased isolation facilities in a bid to handle a potential spike in Omicron cases in Indonesia, an official stated.

“The government has partnered with telemedicine platforms and referral hospitals to improve (COVID-19) patients' accessibility to quality health services,” spokesperson for the COVID-19 Handling Task Force Wiku Adisasmito noted in a written statement confirmed here on Friday.

Adisasmito remarked that the health services provided encompass medical consultation and free delivery services for medicines for COVID-19 patients conducting self-isolation at home.

According to the spokesperson, the efforts were made by the government following a significant increase in COVID-19 positive cases in the world in the past two weeks.

This is especially in Indonesia where the number of cases had also increased for two consecutive weeks, from 1,200 to 1,400 weekly cases. The figure even touched almost three thousand cases in the last week, or more than doubled from the previous week.

“On January 12, 2022, an additional 600 positive cases were recorded. Earlier, the number of cases had been successfully curbed in the range of 100-200 additional positive cases per day," he noted.

The number of active cases has also increased consistently. As of January 12, 2022, the number of active cases reached seven thousand, whereas earlier, it was successfully curbed to four thousand active cases.

Due to the increasing number of people testing positive for COVID-19 after traveling abroad, the government had added four isolation hotels in order to increase the isolation bed capacity.

Cumulatively, the arrival of international travelers in Jakarta, as one of the entry points for international arrivals from May 2020 to January 12, 2022, reached 713,222, with the highest trend in the number of arrivals occurring in early January 2022.

"The number of positive cases among (international) travelers reached 200-350 cases per day. Most of them experienced no symptoms and did not need hospital treatment," the spokesperson noted.

To this end, he deemed the existence of additional isolation facilities as being crucial//ANT