Indonesia Starts Vaccinating Children Aged 6 to 11 against Covid-19

KOMPAS.com – The government will extend its Covid-19 vaccination program to children aged 6 to 11 years starting from Tuesday, December 14 after receiving recommendations from the Indonesian Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (ITAGI).

The vaccination program for this age group, which will be done in stages until next year, aims to inoculate over 26 million children following the number of the 2020 population census.

“We hope that on December 14, the vaccination program for the 6-11 age group comprising a total of 26.8 million will kick off in several areas that have been determined and will be done gradually until next year,” said the Ministry of Health’s acting director general of disease control and prevention Dr. Maxi Rein Rondonuwu in a statement on Monday, December 13.

Also read: Indonesia Approves Sinovac Covid-19 Vaccine for Emergency Use in Children Aged 6 to 11

The Covid-19 jab for children will be provided at the community health centers, hospitals, government and private health facilities, and vaccination centers.

Besides, immunization could also be done at schools and social welfare facilities such as foster homes.

The vaccine comprising 0.5 ml will be administered as a two-dose series, 28 days apart. The health care workers will conduct a screening process before the Covid-19 jab.

The first stage of the vaccination will first be done in provinces and regencies/cities. As many as 6.4 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine have been allocated for children this month. Starting from January 2022, the Sinovac vaccine will only be provided for children.

(Writer: Mela Arnani | Editor: Rendika Ferri Kurniawan)

Source: https://www.kompas.com/tren/read/2021/12/13/173000465/vaksinasi-anak-usia-6-11-tahun-dimulai-besok-ini-daftar-lokasinya?page=all#page2.