Malang, East Java (ANTARA) - The Regional Leadership Communication Forum (Forkopimda) of Greater Malang launched a car that will provide drive-thru vaccination services in a bid to expedite COVID-19 vaccinations in Malang City, Malang District, and Batu City, East Java.

Malang Police Chief Adjunct Senior Commissioner Bagoes Wibisono stated in Malang District, East Java, on Friday that one of the challenges in expediting COVID-19 vaccination in East Java's areas is the high population of people.

"That poses many challenges to East Java, including expediting vaccinations to handle COVID-19," Wibisono remarked.

He explained that the drive-thru vaccination car, launched by Forkopimda of Greater Malang, was one of the innovations of all stakeholders in the three regions.

Wibisono noted that the drive-thru vaccination car was expected to support expediting COVID-19 vaccinations in the Greater Malang area and offering easier access to vaccinations for the residents.

"This (drive-thru vaccination car) is expected to make it easier for the community to get vaccinated and to accelerate vaccination for all residents in Greater Malang," he remarked.

Related news: East Java gets first drive-through COVID-19 vaccination facility

According to Wibisono, for the first stage, the drive-thru vaccination car will be operated by 10 health personnel that will administer approximately 50-100 vaccine doses per day.

"Sinovac vaccines will be used for inoculation. For the deployment of the drive-thru vaccination car, a trial run will be conducted at the Kanjuruhan Stadium in Malang," he noted.

In a bid to boost immunity against COVID-19, the Indonesian government launched a nationwide vaccination program on January 13, 2021, and President Joko Widodo was the first vaccine recipient under the program.

The central government has set a target to vaccinate at least 70 percent of the Indonesian population by December 2021.

According to data from the Health Ministry, as of October 1, 2021, as many as 92,161,001 citizens had received their first COVID-19 vaccine dose, and 51,750,697 Indonesians have been fully vaccinated.

Related news: Regions can emulate Bogor's drive-through vaccination facility: Jokowi

Translator: Vicki Febrianto, Raka Adji
Editor: Suharto
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