Indonesian President Jokowi Urges Equal Access to Covid-19 Vaccine in UN Address

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – Indonesian President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo called for equal access to the Covid-19 vaccine for all nations in his first-ever United Nations (UN) General Assembly address today.

Jokowi joined other leaders to address a high-level meeting of the world’s preeminent international institution via prerecorded messages during the institution’s 75th General Assembly amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“Vaccines will be a game-changer in the fight against the pandemic. We must collaborate to ensure that all countries have equal access to safe and affordable vaccines,” said Jokowi in his speech broadcast via the Presidential Secretariat’s YouTube channel on September 23.

Also read: Indonesia’s President Jokowi to Address United Nations Assembly for the First Time

To do so, the president underscored the importance of prioritizing the spirit of multilateralism among the countries to combat the Covid-19 pandemic. He added such spirit should be placed at the forefront of all cooperation among countries at every opportunity and not only during the Covid-19 pandemic.

He said that it is perfectly understandable that in building bilateral and multilateral cooperation, every country will always fight for their national interests. However, he added, countries should not forget their responsibility to contribute to achieving peace, stability, and prosperity for the world.

Therefore, Jokowi said that the UN needs to strengthen its collective leadership in the global arena. “The world needs a stronger spirit of collaboration and global leadership to create a better world.”

Also read: Jokowi Optimistic Indonesian Economy Will Grow in 2021 Despite Covid-19

“And the good governance of world health resilience must be strengthened as the world health resilience which is based on national health resilience will determine the future of the world. Economic activities must be done gradually,” he added.

He went on to reiterate the need for unity among all UN member states rather than rivalries among nations that persist in handling the Covid-19 crisis.

“We are all concerned about this situation. Our concerns get bigger during the Covid-19 pandemic. At a time when we all should unite to fight the pandemic, instead what we see is that there are still divisions and growing rivalries,” said Jokowi.

“We should always be united and always use a win-win approach to mutually beneficial relations among countries.” 

Also read: Indonesian Covid-19 Task Force Warns of Looming Health System Collapse

The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, he said, is huge in terms of health and socioeconomic conditions. No one is safe from the coronavirus as it does not recognize national borders.

Therefore it is important for all countries to help each other in preventing Covid-19 from spreading, he said.