Indonesia to Follow Global Standards for Safe Covid-19 Vaccine Distribution

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – Sri Mulyani reassured the public that Indonesia’s Covid-19 vaccine will be distributed safely and effectively in keeping with President Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo’s instructions.

Indonesia’s Finance Minister said the safe distribution of a Covid-19 vaccine in Indonesia means that all scientific aspects must meet the recommended standards or fulfill the internationally adopted standards.

“To ensure its safety, the vaccine must pass proper clinical trials to give peace of mind to the public.” 

The success and result of vaccine clinical trials as well as international safety standards determined by reputable bodies such as the WHO and the Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (ITAGI) are essential to rolling out Indonesia’s Covid-19 vaccination plans.

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Sri Mulyani emphasized that Indonesia will follow international standards and that the country will not revert to any other standards.

The decision to follow international standards is to show that the Indonesian government has not accelerated Covid-19 vaccine distribution nor conducted its own mechanism of a proper coronavirus vaccine.

“By adopting the WHO and ITAGI’s standards, Indonesia will be able to start its coronavirus vaccination program even if the vaccines originate from different brands,” the Finance Minister said.

Due to the substantial amount of coronavirus vaccines needed in Indonesia — 267 million doses to be exact — the government has used this period to create a detailed plan.

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Indonesia’s Finance Minister shared that one of the plans is to create a simulation of a vaccination roll-out in Bogor, Bali, and Ambon, as advised by the country’s Ministry of Health.

The simulations are to give the government an idea of how to execute a Covid-19 vaccination program once the vaccine is ready.

Indonesia’s Ministry of Health is also conducting an evaluation of healthcare providers that either have or must equip themselves with cold storage facilities to avoid damaging the vaccines in accordance with WHO standards.

“According to the health ministry, 90 percent of all healthcare providers have met the WHO’s standards on cold storage facilities. We still need to provide more cold storage facilities to ensure that all future vaccines will be safely stored.”

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President Jokowi previously outlined the government’s swift move in distributing a coronavirus vaccine in Indonesia.

One reason is that Indonesia has been developing its own vaccine with the government in the final round of purchasing the vaccines from three producers: Cansino, G42/Sinopharm, and Sinovac.

However, all three manufacturers have yet to pass Phase 3 clinical trials.

Jokowi reiterated that the rush for a vaccine does not only apply to Indonesia, but to all countries as the global race for a coronavirus cure is in full gear.

The Indonesian President further explained that this global rush is to help their respective societies ward off the novel virus and restore individual economies.

Jokowi underlined that despite this rush, Indonesia’s residents will only be inoculated with a vaccine that has properly passed clinical trials to ensure that a potential coronavirus cure is safe and has no side effects.

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“What we want to avoid is rushing in obtaining a vaccine that has no scientific data or from a manufacturer that has not prioritized safety standards. We cannot allow that to happen,” said Jokowi.

Jokowi has instructed his cabinet ministers to involve religious organizations in the country such as Muhammadiyah, Nahdlatul Ulama, and the Indonesian Ulema Council in socializing Indonesia’s Covid-19 vaccination plans.

Indonesia’s President has stressed the important role religious organizations have in elaborating on the benefits of a vaccine to the public.

(Writer: Muhammad Idris | Editor: Muhammad Idris)

Source: https://money.kompas.com/read/2020/10/28/080320626/jokowi-borong-vaksin-covid-19-yang-belum-lolos-uji-klinis-ini-kata-sri-mulyani?page=all#page2