VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Mar. 15 - The coronavirus pandemic has significantly strengthened market power among dominant firms, which could put a drag on medium-term growth and stifle innovation and investment, the International Monetary Fund said on Monday in a new research paper.

The research shows that key indicators of market power are on the rise, including price markups over marginal costs, and the concentration of revenues among the four biggest players in a sector, the IMF said.

“Due to the pandemic, we estimate that this concentration could now increase in advanced economies by at least as much as it did in the 15 years to end of 2015,” IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said in a blog post accompanying the paper. “Even in those industries that benefited from the crisis, such as the digital sector, dominant players are among the biggest winners.” (Reuters)

Mar. 15 -  Indonesia’s COVID-19 vaccination program will be greatly challenged by the arrival of 75 percent of fresh vaccine doses between July and December this year, the Health Minister has said.

The government will have no option, but to push the program to its maximum capacity during that period, Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin told legislators in Jakarta on Monday.

There is a need to increase the vaccination capacity, he said during a hearing with members of the House of Representatives' Commission IX, which oversees healthcare and manpower.

At least 5.4 million Indonesians have so far received vaccine doses since January 13, 2021, when the government officially launched the national vaccination program.

From January to February this year, Indonesia's vaccination rate was recorded at between 10 thousand and 100 thousand shots per day owing to the limited availability of doses, the minister said.

During that time, the availability of vaccine doses was recorded at 10 million doses, Sadikin explained, adding that Indonesia has obtained 15 million doses for March and April each.

With these 30 million doses, the number of COVID-19 vaccine recipients could be increased to 100 thousand-500 thousand a day, he said.

"Now, we are inoculating some 300 thousand people. In April, the vaccination rate can hopefully be increased to 500 thousand a day," he added.

The Health Ministry has set a target of inoculating one million people per day, or 25 million people a month, for May and June this year, he revealed.

Coronavirus infections initially surfaced in the Chinese city of Wuhan at the end of 2019.

Since then, COVID-19 has affected over 215 countries and territories, including 34 provinces of Indonesia, leading to a massive number of fatalities and creating grave public health and economic crises.

To safeguard Indonesians from the lethal virus, the Indonesian government has secured COVID-19 vaccine doses through bilateral and multilateral mechanisms.

Indonesia, for instance, has approved the use of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by China’s Sinovac Biotech, even as it is working to develop its own vaccine, named Merah Putih (Red and White) after the national flag.

President Joko Widodo was the first recipient of the Sinovac vaccine jab.

To attain herd immunity and free the nation from the clutches of the pandemic, Vice President Ma'ruf Amin has stressed on successfully administering the COVID-19 vaccine to the targeted population.

The Health Ministry has projected that inoculating around 181.5 million people under the vaccination program is expected to take 15 months.

Indonesia's COVID-19 infection rate has crossed one million cases since January 26, 2021. (Antaranews)

Mar. 15 - Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) Minister Basuki Hadimuljono emphasized that all preparations for infrastructure construction should be completed and meet the target of soft landing in 2024.

“I expect that the infrastructure construction work currently underway would be completed in time for the soft landing in 2024. Furthermore, the ministry has worked better in the last 10 years, and our resources can be potentially utilized,” Hadimuljono stated while opening the 2021 PUPR’s Regional Consultation Forum here on Monday.

The PUPR’s Regional Consultation Forum refers to an annual event that offers a platform for provincial representatives to meet the ministry’s officials and discuss programs for building infrastructure nationwide in the near future.

Citing President Joko Widodo’s directive, the minister noted that infrastructure construction plans must be started from now on.

The minister revealed that the meeting focused on spatial aspects, so the program’s proposal or plan will be analyzed in accordance with its prioritized area in each province, as stipulated in the National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN) 2020-2024, Government Regulation (PP) No 17/2017, and the Provincial and Regional Spatial Plan (RTRW).

“We hold this regional consultation as a mechanism to plan and budget the PUPR’s infrastructure construction in Indonesia. Hence, we expect that all aspirations and programs from each region can be aligned with our work this far,” Hadimuljono affirmed.

This year, the PUPR holds a regional consultation on the topic “To Solidify the PUPR’s infrastructure constructions for Economic Recovery and Structural Reforms towards Onward Indonesia.” (Antaranews)

Mar. 15 - A high-ranking police officer instructed personnel of the Indonesian police's mobile brigade (Brimob) deployed in Papua to gain a broad understanding of the culture of native Papuan communities.

"We respect the roots of the culture of the people where we are stationed," Papua Police Chief Insp. Gen. Mathius D. Fakhiri noted in a statement that ANTARA quoted here on Monday.

Last week, Fakhiri had embarked on his first official visit to Timika, the capital of Mimika District, after being recently inaugurated as the Papua police chief.

By respecting and understanding the Papuan people's culture, the Brimob personnel would be able to steer clear from unnecessary problems that could dampen the public’s trust, according to Fakhiri.

To this end, the Brimob personnel, coming from different parts of Indonesia and stationed in Papua, must thoroughly comprehend ways to deal with the native Papuans, he emphasized.

Apart from gaining multi-cultural awareness, the Brimob personnel, who join the Nemangkawi task force and other units, must remain firm in dealing with any security challenge.

The military and police personnel stationed in certain areas, with high security risks, continue to face challenges posed by notorious armed Papuan criminals, who commit acts of violence, he stated.

In responding to this situation, all police officers should enforce the law in an assertive and measurable manner, he remarked.

"Being firm does not mean to be violent. Any act of violence must be stopped," Fakhiri affirmed.

Security disturbances have been reported sporadically from several areas, such as Intan Jaya District, where armed Papuan groups operate.

Reports indicated that several armed Papuan groups, including the one led by Sabinus Waker, operate around Intan Jaya.

Armed groups in the district have repeatedly engaged in gunfights with security personnel. They have also gone on a shooting rampage targeting innocent civilians.

ANTARA had reported the launch of a security operation -- "Operation Nemangkawi" -- in 2019 following the massacre of 31 workers from PT Istaka Karya in Kali Yigi and Kali Aurak in Yigi Sub-district, Nduga District, on December 2, 2018.

Armed Papuan rebels, who were reportedly behind the brutal killings of the Trans Papua construction workers, also killed a soldier, identified as Handoko, and injured two other security personnel, Sugeng and Wahyu.

The government has launched emergency response measures to address the impact of the most recent instances of armed conflict, which have forced around 600 locals to flee their homes.

To this end, Indonesia's Social Affairs Ministry recently supplied aid packages to those taking refuge.

The aid packages comprised 660 packaged food boxes, 420 food packs for children, 100 folding tents, 200 folding mattresses, and 300 blankets. (Antaranews)