VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Airlangga University Chancellor Prof. M. Masih handing over the Red and White Vaccine seeds to President Director of PT. Biotis Pharmaceuticals Indonesia, on Tuesday (November 9, 2021). FOTO ANTARA/HO-Humas Unair/aa - 

Main researcher for clinical trials of Airlangga University's (Unair's) Red and White vaccine, Dr Dominicus Husada, SpA(K), confirmed that phase one of the Red and White vaccine's clinical trial will commence on February 8, 2022.

"The preparations are on track," the doctor stated when contacted by ANTARA from here on Friday.

Husada explained that as many as 90 participants, aged 18 years and above, would participate in the phase 1 clinical trial. The vaccine's clinical trials will be conducted at the Dr Soetomo Regional Public Hospital (RSUD) in Surabaya, East Java.

"The phase 1 clinical trial is planned to be conducted for a year, with the objective of evaluating the safety and immunity resulting from the vaccine candidate," he remarked.

According to Husada, the Red and White vaccine candidate developed by Unair would undergo three phases of clinical trials, with each phase planned to be conducted for a year.

"Volunteers for the phase 1 clinical trial are mostly residents of East Java, especially Surabaya," he noted.

Regarding preparation for the phase 1 clinical trial, Husada explained that all aspects are set according to plan, including the trial participants, completeness of buildings and equipment, medical equipment, as well as staff, administrative, and funding readiness.

Meanwhile, approval for clinical trials of the vaccine will be issued by the National Agency of Drug and Food Control (BPOM).

Unair developed its Red and White COVID-19 vaccine seeds based on the inactivated virus.

The university has handed over the vaccine seeds to PT Biotis Pharmaceuticals Indonesia to be prepared for the vaccine's clinical trials.

The Red and White vaccine seeds developed by Unair have undergone the phase 1 and 2 of preclinical trials. The phase 1 preclinical trial was conducted on mice, while monkeys were the trial subjects for phase 2.

Once the vaccine has successfully gone through phase 1, 2, and 3 clinical trials, it is expected that the Red and White vaccine, developed by Airlangga University, would obtain an emergency use authorization, or EUA, from the BPOM, Husada stated//ANT

Indonesian Navy personnel watch KRI Sampari-628 anchored at Lembar Port, West Lombok district, West Nusa Tenggara, on Friday (January 28, 2022). (ANTARA/HO-Lanal Mataram) - 

The Indonesian Navy will deploy five warships to secure the 2022 MotoGP championship that will take place at the Mandalika International Street Circuit, West Nusa Tenggara, in March, a navy official has confirmed.

Commander of the Mataram Naval Base, Colonel Djawara Whimbo, said that the warships will be deployed to thwart security threats, particularly threats in the sea, during the MotoGP championship.

"The five warships will be assigned to areas close to the MotoGP venue, and days prior to the event, we will focus the security mission to the seashore close to the circuit and at passenger ports," Whimbo informed in Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara, on Friday.

The security patrol at the province's five ports -- three ports of Lombok Island and two of Sumbawa Island -- will involve military officers and relevant institutions, such as port authorities, the SAR team, water police, and maritime security agency, he said.

"All relevant components will be involved in the security mission," Whimbo added.

Apart from tackling sea piracy, the navy will also guard the sea to assist the evacuation of passenger ships involved in accidents if needed, the naval base commander said.

The navy is currently continuing joint security training to enhance its capability in anticipating and handling possible security issues that may occur at sea, he informed.

"We are currently involving relevant stakeholders in joint training to handle possible future issues. For instance, we will collaborate with the water police to tackle the sea piracy issue," Whimbo said.

He informed that of the five planned naval ships, KRI Sampari-628 has been anchored at Lembar Port in West Lombok district.

"The other ships are on their way, with one ship currently sailing for West Nusa Tenggara, and three other ships will be deployed close to the MotoGP championship date," the colonel added//ANT

Illustration - The process of building a flat. ANTARA/HO-Directorate General of Housing, The Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing - 

The Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) has urged contractors involved in the construction process for the One Million Houses Program to use domestic products.

"We will encourage the use of domestic products in the One Million Houses Program," Director General of Housing at the ministry Iwan Suprijanto noted in a press release here on Friday.

Apart from boosting the competitiveness of domestic industries, using domestically-made building material products can also help boost the economy.

Suprijanto noted that his ministry will start using domestic products and specially in the housing construction specifications of the Directorate General of Housing of the ministry.

Several residential development projects that will be optimized include the construction of special houses and flats.

"I hope that in future, we would have standardization of building materials, especially of domestic products. The push to use domestic products, especially in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, is part of the efforts to restore the national economy," he stressed.

Moreover, the housing or property sector was able to drive 174 other sectors related to building materials and this also had a positive impact on employment.

The ministry noted that under the One Million Houses Program, some 1,105,707 housing units were built across Indonesia in 2021.

Minister Basuki Hadimuljono attributes this achievement to the support of various stakeholders in the housing sector, for instance, from housing developers, banks, the private sector, and communities throughout Indonesia//ANT

BKKBN's Advocacy and Information Mobilization Deputy Sukaryo Teguh Santoso (right) during the event to distribute fortified rice to prevent stunting in Bandung, West Java, on Thursday (January 27, 2022). (ANTARA/HO-BKKBN/FR) - 

The National Population and Family Planning Agency (BKKBN) and State Logistics Agency (Bulog) distributed rice fortified with vitamins and other nutrients in a bid to prevent stunting, a chronic lack of nutrition that causes impaired growth.

Through a press statement on Friday, BKKBN's Advocacy and Information Mobilization Deputy Sukaryo Teguh Santoso noted that the nutritionally-fortified rice was distributed through the Stunting Handling Healthy Kitchen Program, or Dashat.

According to Santoso, the program aims to assist in handling stunting by filling nutrient gaps through providing healthy food to pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers, and infants, specifically those experiencing stunting.

The distribution of fortified rice through the Dashat Program was conducted in Bandung, West Java, among others, on January 27, 2022.

Bulog's Business Director, Febby Novita, noted that the company supports the efforts to meet the people's nutritional requirements by providing healthy, quality, and nutritious food products, such as the FortiVit rice.

FortiVit rice is recommended for consumption for a healthy lifestyle and to prevent stunting, she remarked.

Novita expounded that the fortified rice is rich in micronutrients, such as vitamin A, vitamin B1, vitamin B3, vitamin B6, folate, vitamin B12, iron, and zinc.

The stunting rate in Indonesia categorically remains high. According to the 2021 Indonesia Nutrition Status Study (SSGI), the national rate of stunting declined, from 27.7 percent in 2019 to 24.4 percent in 2021.

Through the Dashat Program, BKKBN strives to raise public awareness on balanced nutrition and to help fulfill the people's nutritional requirements.

Bulog's support aims to optimize the Dashat Program to prevent anemia and address the lack of nutrition in pregnant mothers and children that could cause stunting//ANT