Day: December 28, 2022

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Youth role crucial for realizing Golden Indonesia: VP

The younger generation will have an important role in welcoming Golden Indonesia in 2045 when Indonesia will mark 100 years of independence, Vice President Ma’ruf Amin has said.

“Let us prepare the younger generation to welcome Golden Indonesia 2045. We protect this country, its unity, its integrity, and this country must still be a democratic country,” he remarked during an audience with the central board of the Indonesian Catholic Student Association (PMKRI) at his official residence in Jakarta on Wednesday.

The younger generation is the heir of the nation, he said. One of the real roles that can be taken up by the younger generation to welcome Golden Indonesia is to inspire other youngsters to study and work properly.

“And I think PMKRI’s role as a student organization should be to encourage fellow students that they have a responsibility waiting for them,” he added.

Good education will give birth to human resources who are innovative and have transformative thinking and skills, so they will be able to realize the ideals of a Golden Indonesia.

The role of the younger generation in society also needs to be strengthened, especially in maintaining national unity in the midst of Indonesia’s diversity.

“Our greatest main capital in building this nation is unity, Indonesian unity, the integrity of this nation,” he explained.

Amin reiterated the importance of the role of the younger generation in making Indonesia a developed and strong country at the golden age of 100 years. He also advised that this role be carried out properly for the progress of the nation and state.

“We (the current government have been elected) only until 2024, but then it will be continued by the younger generation. We are only providing a kind of foundation, just the milestones for the next stages,” he said.

Meanwhile, chairperson of the presidium of the PMKRI Central Management for the 2022–2024 period, Tri Natalia Urada, lauded the narrative of harmony that has been built and maintained by the government. He said this is really needed by the Indonesian people in the midst of various existing differences.

Urada also expressed her readiness as a member of the young generation to study and work well to welcome Golden Indonesia in 2045.

“We really appreciate the government because there have been many changes that have taken place,” she said.

 

Source: Antara News

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National Library asks Pariaman to produce books on local culture

Head of the National Library Muhammad Syarif Bando has urged Pariaman city, West Sumatra, to produce books on local culture, potential natural wealth, and regional tourism.

“Everything must be written down and shared with the international world through the library,” he said after attending the groundbreaking event for the construction of a library and the Madam Literacy inauguration here on Wednesday.

Pariaman city must have books that provide information about the region and inform the world about the city’s wealth, which can have a positive impact on the region, he explained.

Bando also lauded the Pariaman city government, which has committed to producing and improving local books.

He said that nowadays, a library is not only a place to store physical and digital books but also a training place for business actors.

“Training on production is carried out in the library because it has applied science books that can be used by the community,” he added.

Furthermore, he expressed gratitude to the Pariaman administration and residents for the initiative to implement the President’s National Medium-Term Development Plan, or RPJMN, especially in relation to human resource development through libraries.

A budget of Rp10 billion has been allocated for the physical aspects of the library. Meanwhile, the Pariaman city government can propose a budget of Rp1 billion for information technology, book collections, and furniture.

Pariaman Mayor Genius Umar said his administration has created a book on Minangkabau culture and arts to teach local students about the subject.

“We already have the team writing the book and the book already exists, but we are going to revise it back to put it in the library so it is accessible nationwide,” he informed.

Earlier, the National Library funded a library construction in Pariaman with a budget of Rp10 billion. The construction will begin in January 2023 and is targeted to be completed by August 2023.

 

Source: Antara News

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MSMEs still backbone of national economy: KSP

Head of the Presidential Staff Office (KSP) Moeldoko said that Micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) were still the backbone of the national economy,

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) is very concerned about the development of MSMEs in Indonesia, especially the importance of digitalizing MSMEs, he added.

“I am delighted when I see the development (of the MSME sector) because Indonesian MSME actors are the backbone of the national economy, although they were previously hit by COVID-19,” he said during a visit to Pekalongan district, Central Java province, on Tuesday evening.

At the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, MSME actors were significantly affected by the pandemic, however, now, they have developed very high resilience, thus, they have managed to survive, he observed.

Furthermore, he said that the government has helped cooperatives and MSMEs in facing the difficult situation by providing incentives.

“The MSMEs in Pekalongan district are quite creative and very responsive to market demands. There are (many) new product diversifications, which can be developed,” the chief of KSP noted.

Pekalongan district has a number of potential trademark products, including batik cloth, thus they need to be explored continuously to understand the demands of the market, he added.

He said he expected that in the future, MSME players will get more facilities from the Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Ministry as well as the banking sector, especially regarding the provision of People’s Business Credit (KUR).

“Because the Cooperatives and SMEs Minister (Teten Masduki) is very concerned about this,” he said.

Head of Pekalongan district Fadia Arafiq informed that most of the residents in the district produce fashion products, such as jeans and batik.

“Most people know jeans products are from West Java, however, they are made in Pekalongan district. In addition, batik, which is also known to have originated from other regions, many (batik) craftspersons come from Pekalongan district,” she added.

 

Source: Antara News

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Indonesia’s COVID-19 recoveries rise by 2,531

The number of COVID-19 recoveries in Indonesia increased by 2,531 on Wednesday, taking the total count to 6,542,791, the COVID-19 Handling Task Force reported.

According to data received from the task force, Indonesia recorded 695 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday. Thus, the total number of infections reached 6,718,090.

Meanwhile, the number of deaths due to COVID-19 rose by 14 to reach 160,574.

Further, the country’s COVID-19 active cases declined by 1,850 to 14,725. On Wednesday, at least 37,737 specimens were examined, and 2,779 suspected cases of COVID-19 were identified.

As part of efforts to boost community immunity against COVID-19, the Indonesian government rolled out a nationwide vaccination program on January 13, 2021, targeting as many as 234,666,020 citizens.

According to data provided by the COVID-19 Handling Task Force, as of Wednesday, as many as 203,999,159 Indonesians have received the first vaccine dose, 174,732,167 have been administered the second dose, 68,409,850 have taken the third dose or first booster, and 1,154,810 have received the fourth dose or second booster.

Spokesperson of the COVID-19 Handling Task Force Wiku Adisasmito said that, in general, COVID-19 cases in Indonesia are under control, with the case rate below the WHO’s threshold of 5 percent.

Nevertheless, he cautioned the public about the potential for imported cases from a number of countries that are experiencing a spike in infections, such as China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and Germany.

“The Ministry of Health is conducting genomic surveillance to observe (COVID-19) variants and sub-variants that are circulating in Indonesia. If there is an ‘introduction’ of a new variant from abroad, it will be detected earlier,” he added.

In addition, supervision is being carried out at airports and the country’s entry gates, including checking of body temperature and symptoms of COVID-19 in travelers.

The government has urged the public to continue complying with the health protocols to prevent COVID-19 transmission, especially during the Christmas and New Year holidays.

 

Source: Antara News

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DPD Speaker advises vigilance in face of disaster risk

Speaker of the Regional Representative Council (DPD) A. A. La Nyalla Mahmud Mattalitti has asked the public to increase vigilance against the risk of natural disasters during New Year’s Eve celebrations.

“For the people of East Java, especially (those living in) areas prone to coastal flooding, I urge you to be aware of the potential for floods or other disasters ahead of the new year,” he said here on Wednesday.

The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has forecast rainfall in East Java region during the new year period.

Mattalitti said that the disasters that have occurred across East Java should serve as a warning to the community.

“(People should) continue to increase vigilance against the threats of disasters, especially ahead of New Year’s Eve. Pay attention to houses that are left to celebrate the new year,” he added.

He expressed the hope that the public will not indulge in excessive New Year’s Eve celebrations.

“This unfavorable weather cannot be ignored. It is better for the public to be vigilant while anticipating unwanted things,” he said.

Earlier, the Situbondo northern beach (pantura), East Java, was hit by coastal flooding, and Sumenep district was pummelled by strong winds. Meanwhile, high waves struck the coast of Gili Ketapang Island, Sumberasih, Probolinggo district.

Furthermore, several shipwrecks and damaged homes were reported in Tuban district due to high waves.

BMKG appealed to local governments and residents living along river basins and hilly areas to increase vigilance and preparedness against potential natural disasters during heavy rains.

BMKG’s meteorology deputy Guswanto said that the factors leading to the extreme weather potential at the end of the year have included atmospheric change phenomena around Indonesia, such as the Asian monsoon, cold snap, the formation of a low-pressure center around Australia and Madden-Julian oscillation (MJO), along with Equatorial Kelvin and Rossby waves.

 

Source: Antara News

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PeduliLindungi to allow users to book doctor’s appointments next

The development plan of the COVID-19 tracking app PeduliLindungi includes the addition of a feature that will allow users to book appointments with doctors at health facilities, according to the Health Ministry.

“The Ministry of Health is preparing the transition of PeduliLindungi as a #GakCumaCOVID19 (#Not only for COVID-19) public health application. It will include many services, including the doctor’s appointment feature, which is already in our plan,” chief of the ministry’s Digital Transformation Office (DTO) Setiaji told ANTARA here on Wednesday.

In addition to the doctor’s appointment feature, the DTO team will also add child immunization certificates, reminders for taking medicines, and telemedicine feature expansion.

Currently, PeduliLindungi has a total of 60 million active users each month.

As part of its development plan, the app will also be equipped with features that can detect infectious and non-communicable diseases, such as tuberculosis and malaria.

Based on users’ approval, the app will have access to electronic medical records integrated with the SatuSehat (One Health) platform and connected with the National Health Care and Social Security Agency (BPJS Kesehatan).

“We hope this public health app will have wider benefits and will not be limited to COVID-19,” Setiaji said.

Earlier, a similar feature allowing users to book doctor’s appointments was rolled out by Malaysia’s MySejahtera.

The Malaysian government is supporting the booking of appointments between patients and doctors via the MySejahtera app, which has now been integrated with many healthcare facilities.

The services available under the appointment feature include the treatment of patients with external injuries, health screening, pre-employment health exam, pre-marriage health screening, even encouragement to stop smoking, and patient treatment and care procedures.

Meanwhile, the PeduliLindungi application can be used to find vaccination centers providing the fourth dose or second booster of the COVID-19 vaccine. The application allows people to check the locations where vaccinations are being provided.

 

Source: Antara News

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High risk of extreme weather due to cloud convection: BRIN

As a maritime country, Indonesia is a center for convection cloud growth, which triggers rainfall and increases the potential for extreme weather, the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) has said.

“Indonesia is on the maritime continent, a relatively high (receiving) energy region where sunlight is perpendicular to the equator, making our region a cloud convection center and produces a lot of rain,” BRIN expert and researcher Didi Satiadi said at an online discussion on “Beware of Extreme Weather,” which was followed from here on Wednesday.

The high energy received by the equator region can be released in the form of extreme weather, he added.

“Indonesia tends to have extreme (weather) conditions, especially those related to rain because we are the largest rain producer in the world,” he said.

In addition, the atmospheric dynamics on the equator of the maritime continent have also turned Indonesia into an area where atmospheric waves encounter and interact with each other, he added.

“These atmospheric waves can amplify each other, which increases (the potential for) extreme events, but they can also weaken each other so that extreme events do not occur,” Satiadi said.

According to him, the complexity of atmospheric dynamics has made the weather in Indonesia difficult to predict.

He also cited global warming as another factor causing extreme weather and climate change. Global warming is increasing due to the excessive use or burning of fossil fuels.

“Climate change basically increases the hydrological cycle because faster means greater evaporation, more intense, heavier rain, wetter, and drier,” he explained.

To cope with extreme weather, he suggested that people plant as many trees as possible, reduce the use of fossil-based energy, and switch to new renewable energy sources, such as sunlight, water waves, wind, or dams.

 

Source: Antara News

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Indonesian athletes free of doping: IADO

The Indonesia Anti-Doping Organization (IADO) has reported that Indonesian athletes have been found free of doping based on the testing of 548 samples in 2022.

According to an IADO press release issued on Wednesday, the samples consisted of 293 samples taken during ICT (in-competition testing) and 276 samples taken during OOCT (out-of-competition testing), for example, from athletes at National Training Centers.

The athletes whose samples were taken were elite athletes from the RTP (registered testing pool) of IADO, which is directly connected to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

Currently, there are several samples that are still being analyzed by the anti-doping laboratory in Bangkok, Thailand. Those samples were taken from sports events in mid-December 2022.

In October 2022, IADO announced doping sanctions against six athletes. However, they were based on doping control carried out in late 2021.

IADO general chairperson Gatot S. Dewa Broto said that zero cases of doping are not the only benchmark for WADA’s assessment of a country’s national anti-doping organization (NADO). The main indicators of WADA’s assessment of each NADO lie in organizational governance and compliance with the WADA Code.

Organizational governance is one of the essential aspects that must be improved by IADO. In early 2022, IADO was faced with a scandal related to the governance of an anti-doping organization that did not comply with WADA standards.

The sanction was detrimental to Indonesia because the country lost its rights at international-scale events, which include a ban on flying its national flag at the 2020 Thomas Cup.

To this end, IADO is continuing to strive to become a professional anti-doping organization. IADO is also committed to increasing its performance as quickly and as well as possible, including by establishing intensive communication with WADA, the Southeast Asia Regional Anti-Doping Organization (SEARADO), and NADOs from other countries.

 

Source: Antara News

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