"What we have to do is to accelerate the vaccination drive, as we have already administered 31 million doses," Hartarto remarked while speaking at a webinar here on Tuesday.
The minister highlighted President Joko Widodo’s envisioned target for one million shots to be administered daily in Indonesia from July 2021.
"We are optimistic that in July, the number (vaccine jabs administered per day) would reach one million, as nothing else can handle COVID-19 except for accelerating vaccination," he remarked.
Some 600 jabs are expected to be offered by regional health offices and the health ministry, while the remaining 400 jabs will be administered by trained personnel of the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) and the Indonesian Police (Polri).
Related news: Jakarta chalks up 4.5 million COVID-19 jabs
Currently, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Indonesia rose by six percent, still better than the global hike of 6.9 percent, according to the minister.
Meanwhile, Hartarto noted that Indonesia’s recovery rate was also at 91.2 percent while the global level reached 91 percent.
However, the government will continue to closely monitor developments in COVID-19 cases following findings of aggressive delta variants in Bangkalan and Kudus.
The government has also decided to extend the implementation of micro-scale community activity restrictions (PPKM) until June 28, 2021, especially in red zones across 34 Indonesian provinces. Related news: Indonesia's COVID-19 vaccination program draws praise from WHO
Translator: Astrid FH, Fardah
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
Copyright © ANTARA 2021
