The government will increase the vaccination target, from two million to 2.5 million injections per dayJakarta (ANTARA) - Coordinating Economic Affairs Minister Airlangga Hartarto confirmed that 78.3 million Indonesians had received the COVID-19 vaccination as of August 11, 2021, out of the government's total target of 208 million.
"The government will increase the vaccination target, from two million to 2.5 million injections per day," Hartarto affirmed on Friday.
The minister noted that the government will increase the vaccination target to 2.5 million injections per day to achieve herd immunity while protecting vulnerable groups of people.
Hartarto later explained that the results of implementing public activity restrictions (PPKM) Level 4 had shown a promising outcome in reducing the daily count of COVID-19 cases.
The minister informed that the greater the decline in the mobility of people, the greater was the decrease in the number of cases. If the people's mobility can be suppressed, then greater would be the tendency for the number of cases to decrease.
According to the Google Mobility Index for 13 districts and cities in Kalimantan implementing PPKM Level 4, the data indicated that the largest decline in mobility occurred in Kutai Kartanegara District, reaching 35.2 percent as of August 11, 2021.
This was followed by Tanah Laut District, Banjarmasin, Tarakan, Palangkaraya, Banjar Baru, Samarinda, Barito Kuala, and East Kutai District that recorded decreased mobility of between 15 percent and 17.6 percent.
In general, the number of active cases in Kalimantan in August 2021 decreased by 1.69 percent, with three provinces experiencing a decline and two provinces recording an increase, specifically South Kalimantan, with 34.27 percent, and North Kalimantan, with 26.66 percent.
On the other hand, of the 13 districts and cities in Kalimantan that implemented PPKM Level 4, seven areas witnessed an increase in the number of active cases, with six in South Kalimantan Province, and the highest experienced by Kota Baru and Tanah Bumbu District.
The death count in Kalimantan reached 8,209 as of August 11, 2021, with the largest Case Fatality Rate (CFR) in East Kalimantan Province, at 3.1 percent, and South Kalimantan, with three percent.
"The figure is higher or equal to the national CFR, which is three percent," Hartarto pointed out.
Meanwhile, the death rate of other provinces was lower than the national CFR, with Central Kalimantan, at 2.9 percent; West Kalimantan, 2.4 percent; and North Kalimantan, at only 1.9 percent.
The testing numbers of all provinces in Kalimantan were still below 50 percent as of August 11, 2021, though a significant increase was recorded in recent weeks.
The same trend was observed in 13 districts and cities in Kalimantan applying PPKM Level 4, with testing numbers in all areas still below 25 percent, with even the highest being in Palangkaraya, at only 24 percent.
However, other indicators in Kalimantan, such as medical treatment, bed occupancy rate (BOR), and COVID-19 bed conversion, showed an rising trend.
This improvement was apparent from the 13 districts and cities in Kalimantan that implement PPKM Level 4, while two districts still recorded a high BOR: Tanah Laut, with 92 percent, and Banjar Baru, with 85 percent.
At the provincial level, two provinces with BOR above 70 percent were South Kalimantan, with 76 percent, and East Kalimantan, with 70 percent, while three other provinces had very low BOR rates of between 39 percent and 47 percent.
Coordinating Minister Hartarto also urged the local government to immediately convert hospital beds to 40 percent of the total bed capacity at hospitals.
Local governments are also mandated to ensure that daily oxygen supply is available in all hospitals by reporting through SIRS Online and coordinating with the Health Ministry for oxygen stocks.
"The government has taken precautionary measures and immediately sent additional oxygen assistance since based on reports, several areas are still experiencing a shortage of oxygen supply, especially in North Kalimantan," Hartarto pointed out.
The government also mapped out producers and industries for oxygen supply in Kalimantan, including those from Samator Bontang, Samator Kutai, Pupuk Kaltim, and Kaltim Methanol Industry.
The Indonesian government has also accelerated the vaccination program in numerous regions in Indonesia and will distribute 1.7 million doses of the vaccine until the end of August.
The number of vaccines will be added to the remaining stock from the local government for about 400 thousand doses, so that the number of doses to be injected in the Kalimantan region in August 2021 reaches around 2.1 million doses. (INE)
EDITED BY INE
Translator: Astrid H, Resinta S
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
Copyright © ANTARA 2021
