VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

At least 14,868,577 Indonesians have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 so far, Health Ministry data shows. (ANTARA/Akhmad Nazaruddin Lathif) - 

A total of 35,775,567 Indonesians have received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine as of July 9, 2021, an increase of 914,881 compared to the previous day, according to the Health Ministry. Meanwhile, the number of Indonesians who have received the second vaccine dose has reached 14,868,577, up 246,075 from the previous day, as per data released by the ministry here on Friday.

Under the first phase of the national vaccination program, which has been implemented since January 13, 2021, the government is targeting to inoculate 40,349,049 people. The program is prioritizing healthcare workers, public service officers, and the elderly.

Overall, the government is aiming to vaccinate 181.5 million citizens, or 70 percent of the country's population, in an effort to develop herd immunity against COVID-19.

Meanwhile, professor of pulmonology and respiratory medicine at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Indonesia (UI), Prof. Tjandra Yoga Aditama, has urged the public to not hesitate to take the CoronaVac vaccine developed by China's Sinovac even though it has not been recognized by Singapore.

According to Aditama, who is currently serving as the postgraduate director of Yarsi University, Singapore's decision to not include Sinovac in its vaccination list is a step that must be respected because each country has its own policies for dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic.

However, he expressed the hope that Singapore's decision would not affect the Indonesian public's opinion regarding the implementation of the vaccination program in Indonesia, which currently mostly uses Sinovac vaccines.

To tackle the latest surge in infections, the central government has instructed local governments to accelerate vaccinations.

The Jakarta administration has deployed mobile ambulances to expand the coverage of vaccinations in the capital city//ANT

Screenshot of President Jokowi while inaugurating the operation of the Pondok Gede Hajj Dormitory as a COVID-19 Handling Hospital in Jakarta, Friday (July 9). ANTARA/Indra Arief - 

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) confirmed that the Wisma Haji Hospital could soon be operationalized, as early as Saturday, July 10, 2021, to treat COVID-19 patients.

"I see that everything is 99-percent ready, so that tomorrow morning, the Wisma Haji Hospital can become operational," Jokowi stated at the Wisma Haji Hospital, Jakarta, on Friday.

The president made the statement after reviewing the readiness of the Pondok Gede Hajj Dormitory that has been converted to the Wisma Haji Hospital.

"This afternoon, I, along with the religious affairs minister, witnessed the completion of Wisma Haji, which will be converted into the Wisma Haji Hospital for handling COVID-19," Jokowi noted.

To this end, the head of state further thanked Health Minister Budi Sadikin, Public Works and Housing (PUPR) Minister Basuki Hadimuljono, and all of his staff.

"Those who have worked hard within five days to prepare Wisma Haji to be converted into a hospital. I have already checked the hospital equipment, air conditioner, and then the elevator for patients," Jokowi stated.

The Wisma Haji Hospital has prepared at least 900 beds and 50 ICU beds to handle COVID-19 patients.

Jokowi also invited the entire community to serve as volunteers to help tackle COVID-19 and support the efforts of health workers, state civil servants (ASN), military (TNI), and police (Polri).

"I would like to invite students, youth, and women to become volunteers in handling the COVID-19 pandemic," he stated.

In addition to the Wisma Haji Hospital, the government is preparing the Nagrak and Pasar Rumput flats as locations for self-isolation of COVID-19 patients that can accommodate at least seven thousand beds.

On Wednesday (July 7), Jokowi also directly inspected the readiness of the Pasar Rumput flats of three towers.

Based on the COVID-19 Task Force data, as of July 8, 2021, the number of COVID-19 cases in Indonesia had totaled 2,417,788, with the addition of 38,391 people during a 24-hour period, considered the record for the highest daily count of COVID-19 cases in Indonesia since March 2020.

A total of 359,455 active cases were recorded.

The number of recovered patients rose by 21,185, thereby bringing the total count of recoveries at 1,994,573.

Meanwhile, those who succumbed to COVID-19 increased by 852 people, bringing the total death toll due to the disease in Indonesia to 63,760//ANT

A biogas-fueled power plant at Kasikan village Kampar district, Riau. (ANTARA FOTO/Rony Muharrman/nz) - 

The Indonesian government is encouraging the conversion of biogas into bio-compressed natural gas (CNG) for use as a primary energy substitute for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), a senior official has said.

"Bio-CNG involves the purification of biogas by separating carbon dioxide (CO2) and carbon tetraoxide (CO4) and scrapping other imperitic gas components to produce methane having content above 95 percent," director of bioenergy at the Mineral Resources and Energy Ministry, Andriah Feby Misna, said in a written statement released on Friday.

Before it is purified, biogas contains around 60 percent of methane as fuel, while the rest are compounds in the form of carbon dioxide, water vapor, and hydrogen sulfide, she informed.

Its purification to bio-CNG can maximize the methane content to 95 percent and lower carbon dioxide content, she explained.

Biomethane can be developed on a commercial scale as a non-electricity fuel for the transportation sector and as an energy substitute for the LPG used in industry, she said.

"The benefit is quite significant since Indonesia still imports LPG in large quantities. The sources of raw materials for the production of bio-CNG vary," she noted.

Palm oil waste could serve as raw material for biogas and biomethane generation, she added//ANT

Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas attending a hearing meeting with Commission VIII of the House of Representatives. (ANTARA/HO-Ministry of  Religious Affairs) - 

Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas has asked Indonesians to temporarily worship in their homes to minimize the risk of COVID-19 transmission.

"The daily number of positive COVID-19 cases is still increasing. For the time being, let us reduce mobility, be patient, and stay at home. For the time being, we will carry out worship at home," he said in a press release issued by the Ministry of Religious Affairs in Jakarta on Friday.

Houses of worship in emergency community activity restrictions (PPKM) zones and high (red) and medium (orange) COVID-19 transmission risk zones need to be temporarily closed to prevent crowding, which can increase the risk of coronavirus spread, Qoumas explained.

"Public worship activities in the emergency PPKM zone as well as the red and orange zones outside the emergency PPKM (zone) will continue to be carried out at home," he said.

The minister asked citizens to comply with government regulations that are aimed at suppressing the transmission of COVID-19.

"Let us work from home and worship from home. Limiting mobility out of the house is part of a joint effort to break the chain of spread of COVID-19," he urged.

The government has implemented emergency PPKM in Java and Bali regions from July 3 to July 20, 2021.

The minister invited the public to take advantage of the emergency PPKM period to increase worship.

"Let us make our homes a paradise, a comfortable place to share our feelings as well as become an effective mental education medium for a generation that has quality and character," he said.

Earlier, Coordinating Economic Affairs Ministry's special staff, Raden Pardede, had informed that at least 47.7 million COVID-19 vaccine doses had been administered to Indonesians by July 6, 2021, with daily vaccinations targeted to be increased to 1-2 million in August.

“In the attempts to stem the transmission of COVID-19 and to achieve herd immunity, we continue to accelerate vaccinations that touched one million and even 1.5 million on July 1 (2021). We have set the target of two million daily doses,” Pardede said during an online discussion here on Wednesday.

The government is striving to expedite the immunization program to achieve the target of 1-1.5 million daily vaccinations by the end of July this year, whilst maintaining to secure vaccine supplies, he noted.

According to the vaccination roadmap, the government is targeting 1.5 million daily vaccinations by July, 1.5 million by August, 1.8 million by September, 1.8 million - 3 million by October, 2.8 million - 3 million by November, and 5 millionby December this year.

The roadmap has been designed since the government is seeking to achieve herd immunity in Greater Jakarta by the third quarter of 2022, in Java and Bali by the end of 2021, and all Indonesian regions by the first quarter of 2022//ANT