VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The Indonesian Doctors Association (IDI) has called on the government to increase healthcare capacities in regions outside Jakarta.

IDI chair Daeng M. Faqih said that if the country could not stop the transmission of the coronavirus, the number of COVID-19 patients might overwhelm the healthcare system.

In Indonesia, data shows that COVID-19 positive cases have been increasing by about 100 a day but concerns over slow testing procedures may suggest there are more cases than that recorded.

“It is not too late,” Daeng said over the weekend as reported by tempo.co.

He was responding to research conducted by Katadata Insight Center, which revealed that neighboring provinces of the capital city, namely West Java and Banten, had insufficient healthcare facilities.

The research showed that although Jakarta remained a COVID-19 epicenter, having recorded the highest number of cases in the country with 1,124, half of the nation’s cases—its healthcare facilities were more adequate than other regions. The research also pointed out provinces that were not prone to the novel coronavirus such as West Sulawesi, Central Kalimantan and East Nusa Tenggara, but they too were dealing with inadequate healthcare facilities.

Daeng said the government should use the research as a basis to formulate a policy for regional administrations to reduce the susceptibility of transmissions in Jakarta and increase the healthcare capacities of other regions. “Both need to be done promptly,” he said.

He added that the central government should also make a clear policy for regional administrations on how to increase their medical capacities, such as by allocating more funds, as some regions still relied on the state budget for 80 percent of their regional income.

He also urged the government to be more firm in enforcing large-scale social restrictions and to not rely on people’s willingness to adhere to them. 

In a recent meeting with the House of Representatives, Health Minister Terawan Agus Putranto said the shortage of protective gear and medical workers to administer tests and provide treatment for the disease were impeding the country's efforts to contain the COVID-19 outbreak.

“Our first obstacle [in fighting COVID-19] is obtaining a sufficient number of personal protective equipment, such as hazmat suits and surgical masks. The entire world is experiencing high demand for such equipment,” Terawan said on Thursday, adding that the shortage had also hindered authorities from administering rigorous testing programs to detect the disease earlier and more accurately. (mfp)

The Industry Ministry has proposed soft loans for small- and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) to help them pay laid-off workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic. This was stated by Director General of Small, Medium, and Multifarious Industries of the Industry Ministry Gati Wibawaningsih on Saturday as quoted by Antara. Since COVID-19 cases were firstly confirmed in the country in early March, small- and medium-scale businesses have registered a 50-70 percent decline in sales. According to Ms Wibawaningsih, the ministry had worked closely with online shops, including Tokopedia, Shopee, Blibli, and Buka Lapak, to help in marketing the products of SMEs. Wibawaningsih pointed out that SMEs in the country were also reeling from the impacts of a scarcity of raw materials, particularly imported ones. Hence, the Industry Ministry has worked on cooperation with the domestic raw material industry to produce and supply raw materials for local SMEs. The government has also issued a policy on postponing credit payment for SMEs in a bid to lessen the burden on businesses//Ant

Indonesia's capital city Jakarta extended the closing period of its tourism areas to April 19, in the race to contain the growing threat of COVID-19 whose cases in the city reached 1,071 as Saturday. Cucu Ahmad Kurnia, head of Jakarta's Tourism and Creative Economy Office, as quoted by Antara, noted in a statement here on Saturday, that the policy is effective for 17 days, in a bid to contain the transmission of coronavirus that caused COVID-19.The Jakarta administration had earlier closed the tourism centers from March 23 to April 5. Beauty salons, sports amusement centers, night clubs, discotheques, pubs, karaoke, spas, and movie theatres were among those closed//Ant

Government's spokesman for COVID-19 handling Achmad Yurianto has warned of the dangers posed by asymptomatic individuals, who can be potential carriers of the coronavirus, as positive cases rose by 106 to reach 2,092 on Saturday. Yurianto remarked during a press conference of the Task Force for Acceleration of COVID-19 Handling in Jakarta on Saturday as quoted by Antara that Indonesian should be wary of transmission by asymptomatic persons to members of society. Government know this, as OTG (asymptomatic persons) can be potential transmitters of (the virus). Yurianto pointed out that the spike in the number of transmissions indicated that OTG might be acting as potential carriers of coronavirus. Asymptomatic individuals are those infected by the virus but did not exhibit any symptoms. As of Saturday, the number of COVID-19 cases in the country had reached 2,092. The number of recovered patients has increased by 16 to reach 150 people, while the virus had claimed the lives of 191//Ant