Indonesian official encourages ASEAN to become hub for mRNA-based vaccine production
Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto has encouraged ASEAN, including Indonesia, to become a hub for the production of mRNA-based vaccines.
Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto (Photo: VNA)
Jakarta (VNA) - Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for EconomicAffairs Airlangga Hartarto has encouraged ASEAN, including Indonesia, to becomea hub for the production of mRNA-based vaccines.
Speaking at the G20 Presidency Sherpa Meeting on December 7,Hartarto said that one of Indonesia’s priorities is consolidating the globalhealth architecture.
He recommended countries, with a population of 100 million,to have at least one vaccine production centre.
Hartarto emphasised that problems related to vaccinationmust be addressed immediately since inequitable access to vaccines will giverise to new problems, such as the emergence of the new variant called Omicron.
The Omicron variant was first detected in South Africa, with avaccination rate of only 24 percent, while the entire African continent onlyhad a seven-percent inoculation rate.
A lingering pandemic, coupled with the emergence of theOmicron variant, would have damaging effects on the people's lives and disrupteconomic recovery, he said.
To this end, Hartarto highlighted the need for collaborationat the global level, including through the G20, to make stronger and moreconcrete breakthrough steps for the world./.
Singapore and Malaysia on November 29 reopened their shared land borders, allowing vaccinated travellers to cross after nearly two years of being shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
President Joko Widodo on December 6 said Indonesia is one of the five countries in the world that have managed to control the COVID-19 pandemic at level 1.
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The proposed giant sea wall aligns with bilateral cooperation and has been designated a national priority, considering that several regions in Indonesia are experiencing land subsidence of 10–15 centimetres per year.
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Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto (Photo: VNA) 
