VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Screenshot of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Minister Nadiem Anwar Makarim at a national TV station as seen from Jakarta on Friday, November 26, 2021. (ANTARA/Prisca Triferna/my) - 

Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Minister Nadiem Anwar Makarim will continue policies to improve the quality of Indonesian human resources, especially in education, by upscaling programs, including School as Driving Force and the Freedom Campus.

"In future, it is impossible for us to provide something regressive. We certainly always encourage progress. All things, such as the development and distribution of free technology platforms for schools, we will definitely improve and always improve," the minister stated while speaking on a national television program, as seen from here on Friday.

Makarim noted that in future, he will create various other programs, such as for coaxing more practitioners to become lecturers at campuses, which will start next year.

He also emphasized that the ministry will continue to expand the scale of the School as Driving Force Program, increase the number of students involved in the Merdeka Campus, and increase the supply of certified internship opportunities and independent study projects and the scope of Motivating Teachers.

"Hence, next year, there will be several extended programs that would be just starting, (but since) we found the formula, now we (can and) will expand it next year. Scaling up is one of the priorities for next year," the minister remarked.

He expected that this measure would better Indonesia's future, as it can contribute to the biggest and most rampant national innovation in terms of human resource system.

"My big hope is that in the next 10 years, people will see this era as an era where we do various things that will certainly cause some degree of discomfort for those who have to change," he added//ANT

Vice House Speaker Sufmi Dasco Ahmad. (ANTARA/Muhammad Jasuma Fadholi) - 

Vice House Speaker Sufmi Dasco Ahmad has urged the government to refuse entry to tourists from South Africa and other countries where the B.1.1.529 coronavirus variant has been detected to prevent imported cases.

The Health Ministry should promptly conduct research to find accurate information about the new variant of the coronavirus, Ahmad said in a statement released here on Friday.

“I think it is important (for the Health Ministry) to do that as part of prevention and mitigation efforts to protect the Indonesian people from the new variant of COVID-19,” he elaborated.

The Vice House Speaker said that based on the information he has received, the B.1.1.529 variant has twice as many mutations as the Delta variant.

“The government must take a firm step to prevent the entry of the B.1.1.529 variant, which is reportedly more severe than the Delta variant,” he added.

When the Delta variant spread in Indonesia, many hospitals were overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients, healthcare workers became exhausted, medicines and oxygen became difficult to find, and many patients succumbed to the infection, he noted.

Indonesian tourists who have just returned from other countries must undergo quarantine to ensure that they are not exposed to the new variant of COVID-19, he said//ANT

Ministry of Women Empowerment and Child Protection's Child's Right Fulfillment Department Deputy Agustina Erni. (ANTARA/ HO-KemenPPPA/FR) - 

The Ministry of Women's Empowerment and Child Protection invited all Indonesian children from 34 provinces to a fun learning experience through a Virtual Education Tour in commemoration of World Children's Day celebrated on November 20.

"During the pandemic, all children should be able to learn from their homes," the Ministry's Child's Right Fulfillment Department Deputy, Agustina Erni, stated during the Virtual Education Tour press conference here on Friday.

"Hence, the ministry collaborates with Jakarta's Amateur Astronomer Association (HAAJ) to hold this activity, so that every child can receive knowledge and happily study through a virtual tour to explore space," she noted.

During the event, Indonesian children from all provinces could experience a virtual tour to explore the planetarium, learn about the solar system and sky phenomenon, as well as directly observe the sun guided by HAAJ's representatives.

Beyond educational purposes, this activity is held to nurture the spirit of Indonesian children to aim high and reach for the sky and to cultivate hope as much as possible despite the pandemic.

Erni's ministry expects that Indonesian children would become more motivated to create a better world in future while also reminding adults to participate with them.

This spirit aligns with the World Children's Day 2021 campaign that upholds the theme "A Better Future for Every Child."

"For all of you children, I hope that you would be able to learn as much as possible. Do not be shy to ask questions because this knowledge is very good to expand all of your horizons," she affirmed.

"I wish all of you Indonesian children a happy World Children's Day. Never stop learning and always be happy," she remarked//ANT

Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas meets with the Saudi Minister of Islamic Affairs, Dawah and Guidance, Sheikh Abdullatif bin Abdulaziz, in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. (ANTARA/HO-Religious Affairs Ministry/KT) - 

Indonesian citizens can enter the Holy Land after the Government of Saudi Arabia lifted the suspension of international travel for several countries and the booster vaccine requirement, Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas stated.

"There are no longer requirements for being vaccinated with the booster dose, but (umrah pilgrims) still have to comply with health protocols," Qoumas noted in a written statement received here on Friday.

Earlier, Saudi Arabia authorities only allowed entry into the Holy Land for those vaccinated with the Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca, and Johnson & Johnson (J&J) brands.

Earlier, the authority had issued a regulation for umrah pilgrims inoculated with the Sinovac and Sinopharm vaccines that necessitated receiving one dose of additional injections or boosters from four vaccines recognized by the Government of Saudi Arabia.

That rule has been lifted, and foreign nationals or umrah pilgrims must undergo a five-day quarantine upon arrival in the Holy Land.

"Pilgrims have to comply with health protocols by undergoing institutional quarantine for five days. It must be obeyed together," Qoumas stated.

Moreover, Saudi Arabia's aviation authority, the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA), has updated its international flight regulations. As of December 1, 2021, flights from Indonesia can directly fly to Saudi Arabia.

Qoumas has welcomed the new regulation issued by Saudi Arabia's aviation authority dated November 25, 2021.

"Alhamdulillah (Thank God), after returning from a working visit from Saudi Arabia, I received official information that starting at 1 a.m. on Wednesday, December 1, 2021, Indonesians will be allowed to enter Saudi Arabia without having to stay in a third country for 14 days," he expounded.

He noted that Indonesia was prioritized for hajj and umrah after he had attended a meeting with the Saudi hajj and umrah authority at Mecca, Monday, November 22//ANT