VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Jakarta. The Kremlin said on Tuesday it had deliberately decided it would not reveal the name of the Russian-made vaccine which President Vladimir Putin is due to take later on Tuesday.

“We are deliberately not saying which shot the president will get, noting that all three Russian (-made) vaccines are absolutely reliable and effective,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

He said Putin, who announced his intention to get vaccinated a day earlier, would probably be vaccinated in the evening and would receive one of the three Russian-made shots.

Peskov said Putin had already done a lot to promote Russian-made vaccines, the most famous of which is Sputnik V. Moscow has also given emergency approval to two other domestic vaccines, EpiVacCorona and CoviVac.

Peskov said that Putin did not like the idea of being vaccinated on camera. (Reuters)

Jakarta. Pfizer Inc plans to tap the mRNA technology to make new vaccines for other viruses following the success of its COVID-19 shot, which was developed jointly with German partner BioNTech SE, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.

The drugmaker said it was ready to pursue mRNA on its own following its experience in the past year working on the COVID-19 vaccine, the WSJ reported, citing an interview with Pfizer Chief Executive Officer Albert Bourla.

It did not, however, disclose any details about the viruses it was targeting.

Pfizer and BioNTech did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.

Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccines, authorized for emergency use in the United States, use mRNA technology.

The success of the technology is prompting drug developers to consider its use in other areas of medicine beyond vaccines, attracting billions of dollars in investment. (Reuters)

Jakarta. The Jakarta administration has extended the implementation of micro-scale restrictions on public activities (PPKM) till April 5, 2021 to maintain the decline in confirmed COVID-19 cases in the capital city.

PPKM has so far yielded significant results in reducing the number of confirmed infections in the city, head of Jakarta Health Office, Widyastuti, said here on Tuesday.

Jakarta recorded a sharp fall in confirmed cases following the implementation of PPKM, with the number of cases dipping from 7,439 on March 8 this year to 5,747 on March 16.

"However, in the post-holiday period of religious holidays (Isra Miraj and Nyepi), the curve rose again, although it remained under control to reach 7,322 cases on March 21, 2021," Widyastuti said.

The significant reduction in active cases also resulted in a decline in the use of isolation beds and ICUs in referral hospitals, she added.

Based on data from the Jakarta Provincial Health Office, the total capacity of hospital isolation beds as of March 7 this year was 8,256 beds, of which 4,922 beds were under use, or 60 percent of the existing capacity.

Meanwhile, the total ICU capacity as of March 7 was 1,148, with occupancy reaching 755, or 66 percent.

Meanwhile, as of March 21 this year, Jakarta had a capacity of 7,863 isolation beds, of which 4,258, or 54 percent, were occupied. The ICU capacity stood at 1,142, of which 674, or 59 percent, were occupied.

"That way, the beds and ICUs that were previously prepared (for COVID-19 patients) can be diverted for the care of non-COVID-19 patients," Widyastuti noted.

Despite the decrease in infections, Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan has urged residents to refrain from venturing out of the house, especially if it is not urgent.

"Alhamdulillah, our joint efforts to reduce the rate of active cases through PPKM Micro are on track, where we can see a significant reduction," Baswedan said.

He also highlighted a survey conducted by a team from the Faculty of Public Health, the University of Indonesia (UI), Unicef, and Puskesmas (community health center) cadres in the past week that showed that the level of community compliance with 3Ms was at an unsatisfactory percentage.

The three indicators covered by the survey showed a decrease, with compliance with the rules on wearing masks and maintaining a distance pegged at just 40 percent and the rule on washing hands with soap at only 10 percent. Earlier, the indicators had touched 85 percent.

"Once again, we remind you to continue to apply the 3M health protocols with discipline, even though we are bored and tired, but the virus is tireless, unsaturated. And I often say that wearing a mask is uncomfortable, but it is more uncomfortable to be treated for COVID-19 infection," the Mayor remarked.   (Antaranews)

Jakarta. Indonesia has secured more than 360 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, which would be sufficient to inoculate the population targeted by the vaccine program to achieve herd immunity, Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin has informed.

"Alhamdulillah (Thanks Allah), we can get vaccine doses for 181.5 million Indonesians. Because one person needs two doses, 360 million more doses have been obtained," he said while monitoring a COVID-19 vaccination program for hundreds of prominent Islamic figures (kiai) at the East Java Regional Office of Nahdlatul Ulama (PWNU) here on Tuesday.

At least 70 percent of the world's 7.8 billion people are expected to be vaccinated to develop herd immunity against the virus, meaning that some 5.5 billion doses, or about 11 billion doses in total, are needed quickly, according to the minister.

Indonesia has obtained four vaccines — manufactured by Sinovac, AstraZeneca, Novavax, and Pfizer — and has set the target of completing the nation-wide vaccination program within 12 months, starting January this year.

"Vaccine production capacity in the world is around 3-4 billion. So, when you get it, you can't choose, because the term is being fought over by the whole world," Sadikin remarked.

During Tuesday’s vaccination campaign, Sadikin witnessed the second dose of the Sinovac vaccine being administered to KH Anwar Mansur, KH Agoes Ali Masyhuri, KH Anwar Iskandar, and KH Abdul Matin. While, KH Muhammad Muslih, KH Jazuli Soleh Chosim, KH Ainul Mubarrok, KH Lukmanul Hakim, and hundreds of other kiais were administered the first dose of the vaccine.

"With the PWNU East Java kiai willing to be vaccinated, it is hoped that it can raise people's confidence in using this vaccine, which is guaranteed to be safe," he said. (Antaranews)