This is because Indonesia has many experts. We need to be independent
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia needs to develop facility and infrastructure independence against the threat of Adenovirus that is strongly suspected to be causal to acute hepatitis disease, House of Representatives (DPR) Commission IX member Saleh Partaonan Daulay stated.

"We cannot rely on foreign countries again because the cost is very high," he told ANTARA here on Monday.

Indonesia's dependence on vaccine imports during the COVID-19 pandemic has exhausted the state's pockets to the tune of Rp36 trillion, he pointed out.

"This figure does not include the Health Ministry's proposal to once again purchase Rp9 trillion worth of COVID-19 vaccines in 2022," he stated.

The high spending cost for COVID-19 vaccines is influenced by the business agreement between countries.

"The average vaccine spending expenditure is business to business (B to B), although there are donations," he explained.

"Meanwhile, the Merah Putih vaccine that has been developed for two years and a half is not yet completed," he stated.

According to Daulay, this budget figure is sufficient to fund various developments in 36 districts or cities in Indonesia, such as in the education and economic sectors.

To this end, he urged the Indonesian government to independently handle the hepatitis cases in the country suspected to be caused by Adenovirus.

"This is because Indonesia has many experts. We need to be independent," he remarked.

Some 14 cases of suspected acute hepatitis cases had been detected thus far in several regions.

This figure will be highlighted during the DPR Commission IX Opinion Hearing (RDP) meeting on Monday noon in which Deputy Health Minister Dante Saksono Harbuwono will participate.

In addition to acute hepatitis, the ministry's preparations to handle endemic transition and 2022 National Child Immunization Month will be discussed during this RDP.

Earlier, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC's) Deputy Director for Infectious Diseases Dr Jay Butler stated that the mysterious acute hepatitis disease in children in many countries was strongly suspected to be caused by Adenovirus.

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Translator: Andi Firdaus, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Sri Haryati
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