"I have signed the circular and each district and city is expected to pay attention to it and implement it. It will be effective as of July 17, 2022, in accordance with the circular of the National COVID-19 Handling Task Force," he informed here on Saturday.
Ahmad said that given the emergence of the BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron subvariants in many countries worldwide, including Indonesia, and the increase in the number of daily confirmed cases in several regions and neighboring countries, the central government is again focusing on taking preventive measures.
The Riau Islands provincial government has increased vigilance because, as of July 15, the number of confirmed cases in the province has reached 36, after about four months of showing a downward trend, he added.
“The acceleration of booster vaccinations and the application of (travel) provisions for domestic travelers (PPDN) must be implemented immediately,” he stressed.
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So far, the coverage of booster vaccinations in the Riau Islands has only reached 47.72 percent, with 717,954 residents yet to receive the booster dose, he informed. Therefore, each region is being encouraged to accelerate booster vaccinations by opening vaccination centers.
The governor also expressed his commitment to making the booster dose readily available for the community by coordinating with the Ministry of Health and said he expected all districts and cities to coordinate with the Health Office of Riau Islands province.
The first case of COVID-19 in Indonesia was confirmed in March 2020. According to data from the COVID-19 Handling Task Force, as of July 16, the nation has recorded 6,131,413 COVID-19 cases, 5,947,980 recoveries, and 156,839 deaths.
Meanwhile, the task force data also showed that Riau Islands province has so far recorded 70,260 COVID-19 cases, 68,312 recoveries, and 1,881 deaths.
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Translator: Ogen, Raka Adji
Editor: Suharto
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