Indonesia Plans to Resume Economic Activity in Phases from September, Says Senior Minister

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – Indonesia plans to reopen its economic activity in phases from September but it will be depending on the results of the country’s preventive measures to curb Covid-19 transmission, a senior minister said.

This announcement came after President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo extended the Covid-19 level 4 restriction on public activities to August 9.

Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan said that efforts to mitigate the pandemic comprising 3T procedures (tracing, testing, and treatment), and 3M protocols (mask-wearing, hand-washing, and social distancing) play a vital role to contain the spread of the Covid-19.

“[The plan] of reopening the economic activity will depend on how the Covid-19 jab drive, the implementation of 3T procedures, and 3M protocols will work,” Luhut told a virtual press conference on Monday, August 2.

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Luhut, who is also the coordinator of the program for Covid-19 level 4 restriction on public activities in Java and Bali, said that the President has instructed all relevant parties to implement the mass vaccination program, the 3T procedures, and 3M protocols to maximum efforts to control the Covid-19 cases and reopen the economic activity in phases.

“We have been instructed to carry out these steps as detail as possible so that the [economic activity] can be reopened in stages from September. It will depend on the weekly progress as some activities may start to resume gradually,” he said.

As for the Covid-19 mass vaccination program, Luhut has targeted to administer 70 million doses in August or an average of two million doses per day. He gave assurance that the number of the vaccine supply is sufficient as 258 million doses will be available until December this year.

“In August we hope to administer 60-70 million people and we hope it will be repeated in September,” he said.

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