"This morning, we welcome the arrival of Janssen and Sinovac vaccines," he noted during a press conference on the arrival of the 56th and 57th batch of vaccines, monitored online here on Saturday.
The deputy health minister remarked that the Janssen vaccines are a form of assistance from the Dutch government through a bilateral scheme.
"This month, for the first time, we have received 500 thousand doses of the Janssen vaccine in the finished form. On behalf of the Indonesian government, we would like to say thank you for the assistance provided by the Dutch government," Harbuwono remarked.
The deputy health minister further confirmed that on the same day, Indonesia had also received 2,075,000 doses of the Sinovac vaccine in collaboration with the COVAX Facility.
"If we calculate from the first arrival in December 2020 to stages 56 and 57 today, Indonesia has already received a total of more than 232 million vaccine doses, both in the form of raw materials and finished products," he noted.
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Harbuwono noted that Janssen's vaccine had obtained the Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) permit from the National Agency of Drug and Food Control (BPOM) on September 7, 2021.
"Janssen vaccines will be administered intramuscularly through a single dose of 0.5 ml to the general public aged 18 years and above," he remarked.
The deputy health minister remarked that during the early stages, the vaccines will be distributed to agglomeration areas.
"With the arrival of these two vaccine brands, the government is optimistic of the vaccination rate being accelerated," he stated.
Harbuwono is optimistic that Indonesia would be able to vaccinate two million people in September through the nation's vaccination program.
According to the Health Ministry's data, as of September 11, 2021, as many as 72,248,720 people had received the first dose of the vaccine, while 41,534,340 people were fully vaccinated through the country's vaccination program.
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Translator: Zubi Mahrofi, Raka Adji
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
Copyright © ANTARA 2021
