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Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto. (ANTARA/HO-Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs/rst) - 

Coordinating Economic Affairs Minister Airlangga Hartarto stated that the application of Regional Government Transaction Electronification (ETPD) for regional income and expenditure transactions supports the improvement of financial management in the regional government.

"The implementation of ETPD is expected to improve the local government's financial management to become more efficient, transparent, and accountable. It also aids to increase regional revenue," Hartarto conveyed in an official statement received here, Saturday.

Presidential Regulation Number 95 of 2018 mandates the implementation of the Electronic-Based Government System (SPBE) for the Central and Regional Governments to provide excellent public services.

Accelerating the realization of SPBE is expected to be supported by the existence of the Acceleration and Expansion of Regional Digitization (P2DD).

ETPD is a digital transformation effort made by P2DD to support the SPBE. In addition, P2DD has conducted several transformations in the local government's financial management and improved public services and governance.

This is done through establishing provisions or regulations, conducting institutional formation, improving implementation and infrastructure, and strengthening data and information.

As an effort to respond to the surge in the digital economy to strengthen the national and regional economy, President Joko Widodo has issued Presidential Decree Number 3 of 2021 on the Task Force for P2DD.

The P2DD Task Force comprises leaders from eight ministries and institutions to coordinate with the 542 teams of P2DD led by each regional head.

The increasing number of the P2DD team is also in line with the increase in regional income transactions. An increase was also clocked in the types of taxes that were electronified, from 81.6 percent in the first quarter of 2021 to 86.2 percent in the second quarter of 2021.

Moreover, an increase was recorded in the types of regional levies that are electronified, from 53.9 percent in the first quarter of 2021 to 62.2 percent in the second quarter of 2021.

Based on the results of the ETPD Index assessment in July 2021, there were 115 local governments (21 percent) in the digital category, 270 local governments (50 percent) in the advanced category, 151 local governments (28 percent) in the developing category, and six local governments (one percent) in the initiating category//ANT

Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan (right), and Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin at the 2021 Health Business Gathering event in Nusa Dua, Badung district, Bali, on Friday (December 3, 2021) - 

Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan has confirmed that COVID-19 booster vaccines will be offered simultaneously in all Indonesian provinces from January 2022.

"We will not designate priority provinces for the booster vaccine as we will offer the vaccine simultaneously in all provinces," the coordinating minister said after opening the 2021 Health Business Gathering event in Nusa Dua, Badung District, Bali, on Friday.

The COVID-19 booster vaccines will be offered free of cost to eligible residents, and other residents will need to purchase them, he informed.

"We will facilitate around 100 million low-income residents with free booster vaccine doses, and other residents who are not included in the benefit recipients list can purchase the booster dose on their own," Pandjaitan said while adding that he will pay for his booster shot.

The Health Ministry is yet to determine the price of the booster vaccine for residents not included on the recipient list, he added.

"We suggest everyone get their COVID-19 booster vaccine jab," he remarked.

Meanwhile, Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin confirmed the booster dose will be affordable and that its price would not exceed Rp300 thousand (around US$21).

"We will first offer the booster vaccine to residents in the same age range as Mr. Pandjaitan (currently 74 years old)," Sadikin said.

At the same event, Bali Province's Health Office head Ketut Suarjaya expressed the hope that residents not included on the recipient list would purchase the booster vaccine on their own.

"The free booster vaccine would be offered to those who received the BPJS Kesehatan benefit, which would mainly target low-income residents. Despite the planned arrangement, we are currently waiting for the technical instruction before determining our next step," the health office head said.

According to Suarjaya, based on the technical instruction from the central authority, the provincial health office will prioritize regions or population groups for the booster vaccine jab in Bali//ANT

A screenshot of people evacuating due to a 5.9-magnitude tectonic earthquake that struck Central Maluku and was felt in Ambon on November 4, 2021. (ANTARA/Daniel Leonard/am/FR) - 

Earthquake activities in Indonesia increased in November compared to October this year, according to the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysical Agency (BMKG).

"BMKG's monitoring result shows that throughout November 2021, there were 980 earthquake activities in Indonesia with varying levels of magnitude and depth," BMKG's earthquake and tsunami mitigation coordinator, Daryono, noted in a statement issued here on Friday.

There was an increase in earthquake activities compared to October, when 844 quakes were recorded, he said.

The quake activities in November were dominated by small earthquakes of less than 5.0 magnitude and they happened 969 times, he explained. Meanwhile, in October, the number of small earthquakes was 831, he added.

"Significant earthquakes with a magnitude of above 5.0 occurred 11 times, which was less frequent than in October, when they occurred 13 times," he informed.

Active earthquake zones were located in 10 seismic clusters in November 2021, he said.

They were Aceh-Nias, Bengkulu-Lampung-Sunda Strait, South Banten-West Java, South Yogyakarta-East Java, Lombok-Bima-Sumba, Sigi-East Luwu, South-North Minahasa, Maluku Sea, Ambon-Seram, and North Papua, he added.

Meanwhile, there were 49 earthquakes that were strong enough for the public to feel, a decline compared to October, when they were recorded at 71, the official said.

He also highlighted that throughout November destructive earthquake incidents only occurred once. The quake was reported in Wahai, North Seram, Central Maluku, he informed.

The 5.7-magnitude earthquake that struck on November 4, 2021, was centered on a beach 16 km west off Wahai and it destroyed more than 26 buildings, he added.

BMKG has forecast that there will be an increase in extreme weather events in the next week in several regions in Indonesia.

According to the agency, several provinces will experience an increase in the growth of rain clouds triggered by extreme weather and atmospheric wave phenomena//ANT

A screenshot of Consul General of Indonesia at Jeddah (KJRI), Eko Hartono, speaking at a virtual discussion on umrah implementation, as seen from Jakarta on Friday (December 3, 2021). (ANTARA/Asep Firmansyah/KT) - 

Prospective Umrah pilgrims from Indonesia are facing problems in getting their electronic visas (e-visas) registered and recognized by Saudi Arabia's Tawakalna application, which is similar to the PeduliLindungi app.

Consul General of Indonesia at Jeddah (KJRI), Eko Hartono, made the remarks while speaking to ANTARA here on Friday.

"Even though this e-visa has been enabled by Saudi Arabia, travel agencies still cannot register the pilgrims when they choose the vaccine (option)," Hartono explained.

However, the Tawakalna application does not recognize vaccines from China, such as Sinovac or Sinopharm, as there are only four types of vaccines that have been approved by Saudi Arabia—Moderna, AstraZeneca, Pfizer, and Johnson and Johnson, he said.

Thus, the Saudi Arabian system is rendering the e-visas "unreadable", he added.

The same problem is being encountered during e-visa registration, he informed. E-visas for Umrah have not been integrated with the pilgrims' data on PeduliLindungi, so Tawakalna is not able to read vaccine certificates, he said.

E-visas are mandatory for Umrah worship, Hartono pointed out.

"Without an e-visa, they can not do Umrah," he added.

A few days ago, the Indonesian and Saudi health authorities had held a meeting to integrate Tawakalna and PeduliLindungi applications so e-visas can be issued to Umrah pilgrims, he informed.

He said he hoped that there will be good news in the near future so that prospective Indonesian Umrah pilgrims can fly to Saudi Arabia without delay.

Earlier, the government of Saudi Arabia had relaxed the rules for Umrah pilgrims who have obtained the Sinovac and Sinopharm vaccines, making them eligible to enter the Holy Land, with the condition they undergo a three-day quarantine.

"Both parties are working hard, but (the two apps) are not able to be integrated yet. I hope there is a solution," Hartono remarked//ANT