Assistant II of West Papua's Regional Secretariat, Melkias Werinussa, noted here on Friday that the booster vaccination coverage in West Papua was still very low when in fact, the government was planning to reimplement booster vaccine as a travel requirement.
Of the 13 districts and cities in West Papua, the region that recorded the highest booster vaccination coverage is Teluk Bintuni District, at 31.1-percent coverage.
Related news: Booster shot to be made mobility requirement in two weeks: minister
"The public must understand and follow the policy. Those who have not received the third dose (booster) vaccine should not become irate if they cannot travel because sometime in the future, the government will issue a rule for travelers to have received the booster dose,"
he expounded.
"We hope that people, who have not participated in the vaccination, can take part in the first, second, and third vaccinations. Currently, there are several vaccine booths that the public can access," he noted.
The coverage of the first dose vaccination in West Papua as of July 5, 2022, has reached 64 percent, while the coverage of the second dose vaccination has only reached 46.5 percent.
The region that recorded the highest first dose coverage is Manokwari District, with 84.7-percent coverage, followed by Fakfak District, 80.7 percent; and Sorong District, 77.3 percent.
Related news: Caution key for handling COVID case rate dynamics: ministry
Meanwhile, for the second dose vaccination coverage, Manokwari District also achieved the highest coverage, at 63.6 percent, followed by Sorong District, 58.6 percent; and Fakfak District, with 57.3-percent coverage.
As part of the efforts to boost community immunity against COVID-19, the Indonesian government launched a nationwide vaccination program on January 13, 2021, targeting as many as 208,265,720 citizens across the country.
According to data provided by the COVID-19 Handling Task Force, as of July 8, 2022, as many as 201,738,589 Indonesians have received the first vaccine dose, 169,277,279 were administered the second dose, and 51,644,027 obtained the booster dose.
Related news: Yogyakarta city's booster dose coverage reaches 88%
Related news: Deputy Governor presses for stringent adherence to health protocols
Translator: Tri Adi, Raka Adji
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
Copyright © ANTARA 2022
