"Inking of Indonesia's proposal for pandemic fund serves as a milestone of this nation in the effort to better prepare our country in detecting and tackling pandemics in the future," Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin stated here on Friday.
He noted that the proposal was inked by some government representatives, including him, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati, head of agricultural instrument standardization at the Agriculture Ministry Fadjri Jufri, Chief Secretary at the National Research and Innovation Agency Nur Tri Aries Suestiningtyas, and Director General for natural resources and ecosystem conservation at the Environment and Forestry Ministry Satyawan Pudyatmoko.
Sadikin remarked that the proposal will be handed over to the representative of WB for Indonesia and Timor-Leste, Satu Kahkonen.
Indonesia and WB have inked the cover letter for Indonesia's proposal on pandemic fund on May 17 at the Health Ministry's office here, he noted.
The minister said that the proposal outlines the commitments of relevant stakeholders in Indonesia in tackling pandemic risks in future.
"After the proposal is inked, we will send it through the pandemic funding portal. It is expected that the funding can be granted for Indonesia," he remarked.
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According to a press statement from the ministry's bureau of communications and services, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati affirmed that the inking of the proposal was a good initiative to improve preparedness in facing risks of pandemics.
Based on past experience in pandemic handling, Indonesia needs financial capability to tackle the risks that arose during the pandemic, she stated.
"As a state, (we) cannot dismiss pandemic just like that. Pandemic fund is a part of the solution to prepare for risks of pandemic in the future," she noted.
Every country needs thorough planning, as most experts said that COVID-19 will not be the last pandemic that humankind will face, Indrawati stated.
The representative of WB for Indonesia and Timor-Leste, Satu Kahkonen, commended Indonesia's initiative.
"Right now, Indonesia puts in efforts to use the pandemic fund, and the government has formulated the proposal well," she remarked.
She stated that the proposal inking can serve as an example of the pandemic funding's usage to support preparations for future pandemics.
Related news: Solid public health policy crucial to Indonesia's recovery: World Bank
Translator: Andi Firdaus, Mecca Yumna
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
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