By : Dodik Prasetyo
The national vaccination program has started since early 2021 and the government continues to try to increase the stock of vaccines. Because Indonesia’s population is more than 220 million and must be injected twice, so 400 doses of vaccine are needed. The public does not need to worry because the government is trying to ensure that the vaccine stock is sufficient so that all Indonesian citizens can get it.
The effort to get out of the pandemic phase is with the national vaccination program, because when everyone has been injected with the vaccine, herd immunity will be formed. So that everyone is healthy, there is no more transmission of the covid-19 virus and is 100% free from corona. The vaccines used for this program are Sinovac, AstraZeneca, and several other types.
Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi stated that the Indonesian government had secured 90,910,500 vaccines. The details are 84.5 million Sinovac vaccines, 1 million doses of Sinopharm, and the rest are AstraZeneca and Covax.
Indonesia’s population is more than 220 million people, while there are less than half of the new vaccines. But the public need not worry because the government will continue to keep its promise to provide vaccines and the injections will remain free. Every effort will be made so that the vaccine supply remains sufficient for all Indonesian citizens.
Minister Retno added that one of the obstacles in procuring vaccines is the slow distribution. The reason is because production capacity is still limited. Indeed, the corona vaccine is a new item and the producers are constantly working hard to be able to supply according to orders. However, due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, still less is produced.
Vaccine factories in China and several other countries continue to produce high-quality vaccines, so that the COVID-19 pandemic will end soon. Therefore, we are asked to be patient because the speed of production of vaccine factories is up to standard and they are pressed for time, also in demand by many other countries.
In addition to distribution problems, the procurement of vaccines is also constrained by export problems. During the pandemic, there were indeed several countries that were still in lockdown or limiting shipments from certain countries, so that the export of goods was rather difficult to do, including vaccines. So it’s a bit sluggish and doesn’t fit the schedule.
However, the public does not need to worry because the vaccine procurement process will continue to be carried out in accordance with the target. Because the target of the national vaccination program is a maximum of 12 months to complete, vaccine supplies must be available before that. The government will continue to pay attention to the health of its people and try to keep vaccine supplies safe.
Maybe there are people who are a bit surprised, why there is not only 1 vaccine circulating in Indonesia (for example, Sinovac only). The logic is this: a pandemic is a global event so that almost all people in the world are threatened by the corona disease. Therefore, the existence of a vaccine is like gold that everyone is looking for.
So if you rely on just one vaccine manufacturer, you will have to wait a long time. Therefore, the government is not only taking Sinovac vaccine, but also Sinopharm, AstraZaneca, etc. Vaccine supplies will be in accordance with the target number and time, so it is hoped that by mid-2022 all Indonesian citizens will have been vaccinated against the corona virus.
People don’t have to worry about the quality because even though the efficacy is different, the effect is almost the same. After being vaccinated, the body will be more immune from the covid-19 virus but cannot take off the mask because the pandemic is not 100% over. It’s better for us to prevent and obey health protocols, than bad things happen.
The government continues to boost the procurement of the COVID-19 vaccine so that there will be enough for all its people. So that we can be free from corona as soon as possible and free from the torment of the pandemic. The public is asked to remain calm while waiting for their turn to vaccinate, because the stock will be maintained to be sufficient.
(The author is a contributor to the Press Circle and Cikini Students)
