VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

An official inspected Papua Bangkit Stadium in preparation of the 2021 PON National Games in Kampung Harapan, East Sentani Subdistrict, Jayapura District, Thursday (June 17, 2021). ANTARA PHOTO/Gusti Tanati/wpa/hp/aa - 

Convening of the 2021 PON National Games in Papua could drive the local economy if economic events take place in concert with the Games, Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef) researcher Bhima stated.

"The continuation of construction projects (in Papua) is one example of a project that could be synchronised with the PON event," Indef researcher Bhima noted here today.

Bhima particularised that proper supporting infrastructure, encompassing athletes lodging and reliable internet connection facilities, were required to hold the Games, thereby making the local construction sector crucial. The locals will also be offered new job opportunities in the construction sector.

Moreover, the Indef researcher noted that the local food and beverage industry offered business opportunities for entrepreneurs to promote local foods. He cited an example from the 2018 Asian Games hosted in Jakarta and Palembang when demand for Palembang’s local delicacy of fried fishcake pempek had spiked significantly.

"Papua also has other unique local delicacies, such as lontar milk pie cake, bagea sago cake, Manokwari's roasted fish, and papeda sago congee. (Entrepreneurs) are required to only prepare an eye-catching packaging and engage in aggressive promotion at online marketplaces for market survival after the conclusion of the Games," Bhima explained.

Apart from construction and food industries, Bhima also suggested local car renting companies to join the economy bandwagon during the Games, consequently kickstarting the recovery of local transportation businesses.

The Papuan government also expects economic development sparked by the PON National Games, scheduled in October 2021, to continue after the conclusion of the Games, particularly in the local micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSME) sector.

Papua Province Regional Secretariat Deputy for Economy and People's Welfare Muhammad Musa'ad stated that the 2021 PON National Games should offer a momentum for entrepreneurs to develop their businesses.

"As in arranging an orchestra, we are striving to first create synergy and fusion from all business sectors (in Papua) for our economic development," Musa'ad stated in Jayapura on Tuesday (July 13)//ANT

Policemen guard behind barricades set up to control the traffic in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Jul 24, 2021. (AP Photo/Hieu Dinh) - 

Vietnam announced a 15-day lockdown in the capital Hanoi starting Saturday (Jul 24) as a coronavirus surge spread from the southern Mekong Delta region.

The lockdown order, issued late Friday night, bans the gathering of more than two people in public. Only government offices, hospitals and essential businesses are allowed to stay open.

Nearly 5,000 of them are from Vietnam’s largest metropolis, southern Ho Chi Minh City, which has also extended its lockdown until Aug 1.

In the latest wave of COVID-19 since April, Vietnam has recorded more than 83,000 infections and 335 deaths.

A meeting of the National Assembly scheduled to open in Hanoi on Tuesday with 499 delegates will go ahead but was shortened to 12 days from the original 17.

The delegates have been vaccinated, are regularly tested for the coronavirus and are traveling in a bubble, and will be isolated at hotels, according to the National Assembly//CNA

Vice President Ma'ruf Amin briefed the Central Java Provincial COVID-19 Handling Task Force via video conference from the vice president's residence in Jakarta, Friday, July 23, 2021. (Asdep KIP Setwapres) - 

The press should continue to work in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic by applying strict health protocols, according to Indonesian Vice President Ma'ruf Amin.

"The press' work must continue, so that the public's access to actual, factual, and credible information is always open," Vice President Amin stated at a virtual Indonesian Journalists Association (PWI) event "Prayers Open Heaven's Door", Jakarta, Saturday, July 24, 2021.

The existence of the press for the country's sustainability is crucial because it serves as one of the pillars of the nation's democracy, the vice president remarked.

Amin noted that during the COVID-19 pandemic, most human activities, right from religious activities to work-related tasks, were conducted virtually to avoid crowds that impact the transmission of the virus.

However, the vice president noted that some activities and jobs could not be done virtually, and one of them was the press.

"Our ways of working and learning have been changing, migrating, transforming, and moving around the digital world. However, some essential jobs have not been fully conducted remotely, including press, journalistic, and media work," the vice president explained.

To support the performance of the press amid the pandemic, Amin stated that the government had encouraged all media workers in Indonesia to participate in vaccination programs.

"The government always encourages the press and media teams to continue to increase their participation in this national vaccination program," he remarked.

As of July 16, 2021, the vice president stated that 22,700 media workers had received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and 14,385 of them had received the second dose.

With the participation of media workers in the COVID-19 vaccination, Amin is upbeat about the target of herd immunity in Indonesia being achieved soon.

"Of course, we are optimistic that the target for the national vaccination program would soon be realized to build herd immunity and successfully provide vaccinations for at least 70 percent of the total Indonesian population," the vice president stated//ANT

A magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck south of the Philippine capital Manila early on Saturday (Jul 24). (Image: Twitter/Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology) - 

An earthquake of magnitude 6.7 struck south of the Philippine capital early on Saturday (Jul 24), the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said.

The agency said aftershocks were expected from the tectonic earthquake, which had a depth of 116 km.

Some residents in the capital region were awakened by the quake that lasted nearly a minute.

"The quake was deep so there is no tsunami," Renato Solidum, director of the Seismology agency, told DZRH radio station. "In Manila, the intensity 4.0 or 5.0 is strong but not yet destructive."

"It's very strong, we're alarmed," said police Major Ronnie Aurellano in Calatagan municipality, Batangas province, which is south of Manila and near the epicentre of the quakes.

"It's raining very hard here as well, but our people here are used to earthquakes. They're aware of the duck, hold and cover when there's an earthquake."

The epicentre is 16km southwest of Batangas province, Solidum said.

The Southeast Asian country is on the geologically active Pacific Ring of Fire and experiences frequent earthquakes//CNA