The Indonesian government really appreciates and is grateful to the Australian Government for sending these vaccinesJakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia received the 159th batch of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines from Australia, which contained 1,095,000 doses in its finished form, and was the result of donations. "The Indonesian government really appreciates and is grateful to the Australian Government for sending these vaccines," the Director General of Information and Public Communication at the Communications and Information Technology Ministry, Usman Kansong, stated, Wednesday.
Indonesia had also received donations of the AstraZeneca vaccines from the Australian government twice earlier. Each batch contained 1.2 million doses and was delivered on Wednesday, October 20, and Thursday, November 11.
Kansong stressed the importance of cooperation between countries, to deal with COVID-19, which has claimed many lives.
Indonesia also expedites efforts to develop and transfer knowledge of COVID-19 vaccines for the Asia Pacific region.
"As friendly and neighboring countries, Indonesia and Australia establish close relations and cooperation in efforts to deal with the pandemic," he said.
The government continuously pushes for vaccinations on a national scale, he also said.
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Given the challenges such as geographical conditions and the large population, the best solution must be sought immediately so that Indonesia can create herd immunity.
Efforts to conduct vaccination programs towards the end of the year would be increased so that the targets set could be achieved, he assured.
Everyone's cooperation was vital in accelerating the national program, Kansong believed.
He cited active public participation as the most crucial thing in making it a success.
"In an effort to deal with the pandemic, the vaccination program is one of the main keys. To succeed, it requires the availability of vaccines that meet the needs of the Indonesian citizens," he said.
A very large supply of vaccines is needed because Indonesia has a population of more than 200 million people, he said.
The government tries to meet the ends through both bilateral and multilateral means. First they aimed to push the vaccination rate by targeting children aged 6 to 11 years, expecting an immediate formation of herd immunity.
"Along with that, the government continuously reminds the public not to be careless in adhering to health protocols," he said in conclusion.
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Translator: Livia Kristianti, Mecca Yumna
Editor: Suharto
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