VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

North Sulawesi Governor Olly Dondokambey (third left) in a group photo with the IJB-Net team. (ANTARA/HO-North Sulawesi Provincial Administration

The North Sulawesi provincial government has cooperated with the Indonesia Japan Business Network (IJB-Net) to develop coconut-based biofuel.

"The initial project for biofuel production will be located in Bitung. A team of IJB-Net, the province's plantation office, and academicians have conducted a survey to obtain a 10-hectare plot of land (for the project)," North Sulawesi Governor Olly Dondokambey revealed in Manado, North Sulawesi, on Wednesday.

In addition to coconut-based biofuel, the governor noted that IJB-Net will explore other economic potential in the province.

IJB-Net will develop a Japanese village in Tomohon City where the houses will be designed in Japanese style and the people will converse in Japanese and sell Japanese food, he stated.

IJB-Net is an organization supported by the Indonesian diaspora in Japan as well as Japanese and Indonesians that are keen to participate in the development of Indonesian products to enter the Japanese market.

The group helps Indonesians to adopt Japanese technology and bridge the collaboration between companies from both nations.

"IJB-Net is ready to synergize with the North Sulawesi government across all sectors," the governor stated.  (ANTARA)

A foreign tourist takes pictures of a paddy field in Tabanan, Bali. The paddy field has been managed as a tourist destination after Subak, the irrigation system for paddy fields on Bali, has been recognized by the UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. ANTARA/Nyoman Budhiana/ed/pd/13

Tabanan District in Bali Province has vowed to boost its ecotourism sector by developing a tourist village based on the Green Development Integrated Farming Tourism concept, the district's head, Ni Putu Eka Wiryastuti, stated.

"This is aimed at preserving the environment to enhance green development based on agriculture as the essence of Tabanan District," Wiryastuti noted in a statement in Tabanan, Bali, on Thursday.

The district head made her statement at a virtual discussion on sustainable development organized by the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) and the Institute of Public Administration (LAN) on July 22.

Deputy Minister of Environment and Forestry Alue Dohong and Surabaya Mayor Tri Rismaharini were present at the discussion.

"We made policies, from the upstream to the downstream sector, which will protect and empower farmers. We prioritize our farmers' products, and we open the market for their produce," she remarked, adding that the future lies in the hands of those investing in sustainable businesses.

Wiryastuti highlighted the tourists’ willingness to pay more to enjoy the beauty of paddy fields in Tabanan.

"This demonstrates that agriculture -- paddy fields -- hold potential in the tourism sector in order to boost both the economy and food resilience," she noted.

Deputy Minister of Environment and Forestry Alue Dohong affirmed that the green economy focused on sustainable development without causing environmental degradation, has become Indonesia's perspective in its development.

"Indonesia will and is on its way toward low-carbon and low-emission development. The green economy movement is a concrete effort to encourage a reduction in deforestation for the benefit of the national and global community," (ANTARA).

Rohingya refugees in Aceh. ANTARA PHOTO/Rahmad/wsj

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)-Indonesia Office officially granted refugee status to 99 Rohingya migrants that three Acehnese fishermen had rescued on humanitarian grounds in June, Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi stated.

"The UNHCR officials have completed the registration of the 99 Rohingya migrants," Marsudi told journalists at a virtual press conference in Jakarta on Thursday.

The registrants comprise 31 women, 41 girls, 16 men, and 11 boys. They are all in good health and have tested negative for the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), Marsudi revealed.

During their interactions with the local residents in Lhokseumawe, Aceh Province, the Rohingya refugees are mandated to follow preventive measures as necessitated by the Indonesian Government's health protocols to contain the spread of COVID-19 pandemic, she remarked.

Currently, the refugees' health condition is no cause for concern, and none of the female refugees were pregnant, she noted, adding that the UNHCR and UNICEF officials offered talent assessment and psychosocial support to Rohingya kids.

On July 10, the Indonesian government shifted 99 Rohingya refugees from the old immigration office in Lhokseumawe to the city's Meunasah Mee vocational training center.

Three Acehnese fishermen rescued the refugees on humanitarian grounds after their boat got stranded in the waters off Seunuddon, North Aceh, on June 24, 2020.

The Indonesian government has offered hygiene kits and logistics as well as health services to the refugees. It has also dispatched medical workers to tend to them at their new accommodation.

The registration process for the 99 Rohingya refugees was held on July 5-11.

During the registration process, UNHCR officials found that 25 of the refugee children were traveling without their parents. However, 13 of them were accompanied by their guardians.

The EU's Foreign Affairs and Security Policy spokesperson, Nabila Massrali, has lauded Indonesia's decision to provide a safe-landing and humanitarian assistance to the Rohingya refugees.

"The rescue of Rohingya refugees, who face dire conditions, is a tribute to the international law and demonstrates the generosity of the people and government of Indonesia," Massrali noted in a recent statement.

In cooperation with Indonesian authorities, the UNHCR, and other humanitarian organizations, the EU has pledged to mobilize humanitarian support to address the most urgent basic needs of the affected refugees. (ANTARA)

Bio Farma explained the stages of creating a vaccine. Head of Corporate Communications of Bio Farma, Iwan Setiawan, said that phase three of the clinical trials for making the Covid-19 vaccine aims to ensure the benefits of the vaccine.

"This is related to benefits, whether it produces antibodies or not," he toldTempo, Wednesday, July 23.

Iwan said there are at least four stages that must be passed in vaccine production. The first stage is Pre-clinical, which is testing the vaccine on animals. Once the animal testing stage is passed, it proceeds to Phase 1 until 3 of the Clinical Trials.

"Phase one is related to safety, to ensure that the vaccine has no side effects and so on. Stage two is related to dossiers; how much is the dose, which is also a safety aspect, "Iwan said.

Iwan revealed that Sinovac Biotech, a pharmaceutical company from China, has conducted all of those phases. Bio Farma took part in Phase 3 of Clinical Trials, which is also done in Brazil, Bangladesh, Turkey, and Indonesia. "The results must be the same," he said.

Iwan said that in the development of the Covid-19 vaccine from Sinovac, Bio Farma acts as the sponsor for Phase 3 Clinical Trials in Indonesia. Bio Farma appointed Padjadjaran University's Faculty of Medicine, as an independent institution, to conduct clinical trials.

Clinical testing will be carried out by sampling 1,620 subjects, selected based on certain criteria, including age criteria of 18 to 59 years.

Vaccine development is one of Bio Farma's five scenarios to participate in handling the spread of Covid-19. Simultaneously, Bio Farma is also preparing Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR), Covalent Plasma Therapy, BSL 3 Mobile Laboratory, and Manufacturing Viral Transport Media (VTM). (tempo.co)