With the arrival of the 147th stage amounting to 1,932,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine, the total number of vaccine doses that Indonesia has received, both in finished and bulk form (raw materials) reaches 395,544,580Jakarta (ANTARA) - Director-General of Information and Public Communication at the Communications and Informatics Ministry Usman Kansong has confirmed that Indonesia received 1.9 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccines through a direct purchase mechanism on December 5.
"With the arrival of the 147th stage amounting to 1,932,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine, the total number of vaccine doses that Indonesia has received, both in finished and bulk form (raw materials) reaches 395,544,580," Kansong stated in a press release, here on Monday.
The vaccine purchase was a manifestation of the government's efforts to continue to maintain vaccine stock stability to support the vaccination program in the country, he affirmed.
The government aims to administer at least the first dose of vaccination to 80 percent of the target population and full dose to 60 percent of the populace by the end of 2021.
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To achieve the target, Kansong has urged the public to not delay vaccination on the pretext of waiting for a certain vaccine brand since all brands and types of vaccines administered under the national vaccination program are equally good and efficacious.
Kansong later noted that if more people delay receiving the vaccination, the more vulnerable they are, with higher the risk of being exposed to the virus. In addition, other people around those who are unvaccinated were prone to contracting the virus.
"Hence, the government continues to accelerate vaccination coverage in an effort to protect more people and immediately build herd immunity," he remarked.
Furthermore, ahead of the Christmas and New Year holidays, Kansong reminded the public to continue to maintain health protocols.
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“Avoid unnecessary mobility and stay away from crowds, especially during the holidays and continue to wear masks. Through our joint efforts, we hope that the current trend of sloping cases would be maintained to avoid a spike in the number of cases for the next year as well," he concluded.
Earlier, Health Ministry's spokesperson for COVID-19 vaccination, Siti Nadia Tarmizi, noted that the government had pursued vaccination coverage in areas with plural conditions, such as the geographical location, availability of transportation, and access for people living in villages to reach vaccination sites.
According to the Health Ministry's data on December 5, over 142 million Indonesians had received the first dose of vaccination, or 68.42 percent, and 99 million people had been fully vaccinated, or 47.55 percent.
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Translator: Fathur R, Resinta S
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
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