Indonesia pushes full steam ahead on G20 Summit preparations by Fardah

 Jakarta, Sept 29, 2022 (ANTARA) - Indonesia will host the G20 Summit for the first time on the Bali Islands, one of the world’s most famous tourist resorts, on November 15 and 16, 2022, as part of its presidency of the grouping. 

The theme of Indonesia’s G20 Presidency, which it assumed on December 2021, is “Recover Together, Recover Stronger.”

The Group 20 (G20) is a strategic multilateral platform connecting the world’s major developed and emerging economies: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Japan, India, Indonesia, Italy, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union. Spain is a permanent guest at the G20.

The members of the grouping account for more than 80 percent of global gross domestic product (GDP), 75 percent of global trade, and 60 percent of the population of the planet.

The Indonesian government has been intensively preparing for the summit with the assumption that all G20 leaders such as Vladimir Putin of Russia, Joe Biden of the US, Anthony Albanese of Australia, and King Salman of Saudi Arabia will join the Bali Summit in person.  

The preparations have covered security matters, logistics, transportation, accommodation, infrastructure development, and other facilities, including the media center and emergency medical response for delegates, among others. 

So far, the preparations have been on the right track, according to Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi.

"In the logistics and the substantial aspects, we are ready. I also believe that our preparation progress is on the right track," she told the press after reporting on the progress of preparations to President Joko Widodo at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on September 9, 2022.

INDONESIA STRIVES TO EXPAND COVERAGE OF DIGITALIZATION OF MSMES by Fardah

 

Jakarta, 16/9/2022 (ANTARA) - Indonesia has over 65 million micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) capable of producing competitive products, though several of them had yet to integrate into the digital ecosystem to promote their products domestically and overseas.

They account for 99.9 percent of the business population and 61.07 percent of the national gross domestic product (GDP), or Rp8,573.9 trillion .

Eager to reduce imports, the Indonesian government has been striving to expand the coverage of digitalization of MSMEs, which is one of the strongest pillars of the Indonesian economy.

The government is targeting 30 million MSMEs to enter the digital market by 2024, including 19.5 million MSMEs in 2022, according to Minister of Cooperatives and SMEs Teten Masduki.

At least 19 million MSMEs have so far succeeded in going digital and expanding their market, while 11 million other MSMEs are lining up to adopt digitalization.

Aspiring to become the largest digital economy, with potential reaching Rp4,500 trillion in Southeast Asia by 2030, the government has accelerated economic digitalization transformation by involving various relevant stakeholders.

The digitalization effort also involves the digitization of MSMEs under various national initiatives, such as the Proudly Made in Indonesia National Movement and the Proud Indonesian Traveling National Movement.

Minister Masduki has urged internet marketers to MSMEs to enter the digital ecosystem, as many of the MSMEs are not familiar with digital technology.

To reduce imports and promote domestic products, internet marketers could seek what the people need, such as creating technology application to facilitate marketing, Masduki stated during the Indonesia Digital MeetUp 2022 recently.

"I call for help for our MSMEs to enter the online market because 50 percent of the products sold in e-commerce are still imported products," he noted.

INDONESIA INTENSIFIES VIGILANCE AGAINST MONKEYPOX by Fardah

 

Jakarta, 6/8/2022 (ANTARA) - Amid the global fight against COVID-19, which was first detected in China in late 2019, nearly 80 countries have lately found themselves battling another front - the outbreak of monkeypox.

On July 23, 2022, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.

As of August 2, a total of 25,436 monkeypox cases have been confirmed in nearly 80 countries.

The United States, which currently has the most monkeypox cases in the world at more than 6,600, declared the outbreak a public health emergency on August 4.

The first monkeypox infection was detected in the United Kingdom in early May in an individual with a travel history to Nigeria, where the disease is endemic. Later, the virus spread to other European countries before moving to the United States, Canada, South America, Asia, Africa, and Oceania.

First identified in monkeys in 1958, the disease is characterized by mild symptoms such as fever, aches, and pus-filled skin lesions. People tend to recover from it within two to four weeks, according to the WHO.

The monkeypox virus spreads through close physical contact and is rarely fatal. The vast majority of patients in several countries, including the US, have so far been men who have sex with men.

In the Southeast Asian region, three countries have reported monkeypox cases as of July: Singapore, with eleven confirmed cases; Thailand, with two cases; and the Philippines, with one case.

Indonesia has so far reported no confirmed monkeypox cases, despite the detection of several suspected cases.

According to Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin, a total of nine suspected monkeypox were detected in Indonesia, but all of them tested negative for monkeypox and positive for smallpox.

INDONESIA ANNOUNCES 2ND BOOSTER AS OMICRON SUB-VARIANTS STOKE CONCERNS By Fardah

 

Jakarta, 30/7/2022 (ANTARA) - The Indonesian government announced the rollout of second booster vaccinations on Friday (July 29, 2022) for those who have completed six months since their first booster shot.

The second booster vaccination is meant to provide additional protection to individuals, particularly healthcare workers, amid the emergence of BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron sub-variants, which cause mild to no symptoms.

The Task Force for COVID-19 Handling has called for continued public vigilance amid increased transmission of COVID-19, with the number of new daily cases crossing six thousand.

"Last time, Indonesia saw a figure above six thousand was in March 2022," the task forces spokesperson, Wiku Adisasmito, said on July 29.

Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin earlier emphasized the importance of the booster vaccine to strengthen immunity against COVID-19.

People who have not received at least the first vaccine dose are 30 times more likely to be hospitalized after contracting COVID-19 compared to those who have received the booster dose, he highlighted.

"People who have only been vaccinated once are about 20 times more likely to be hospitalized. People who have only been vaccinated twice are 10 times more likely to be hospitalized compared to those who have received the booster dose," he remarked.

The Ministry of Health has issued Circular Letter Number HK.02.02/C/3615/2022 regarding the second booster COVID-19 vaccination of healthcare workers as priority recipients because they are in the frontline of the fight against COVID-19.

Vaccine brands that have obtained emergency-use authorization (EUA) from the National Agency of Drug and Food Control (BPOM) will be used for the second booster vaccinations, depending on their availability, according to the ministrys director-general of disease prevention and control, Maxi Rein Rondonuwu.

PRESIDENT JOKOWI SETS SIGHTS ON PEACE-BUILDING IN UKRAINE, RUSSIA by Fardah

 

Jakarta, 28/6/2022 (ANTARA) - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) is scheduled to embark on a peace-building mission to Ukraine and Russia on June 29 and 30, 2022, after attending the G7 Summit for Partner Countries in Germany.

The G7 Summit, held on June 26-27, discussed the global food supply chain disruption and the Russia-Ukraine war, among other things.

The President and his entourage left Germany for Poland on June 28, from where he will enter Ukraine, Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi informed.

He is expected to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on June 29 and call on Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on June 30.

Prior to his departure to Germany, Jokowi told Indonesian media that his mission in Ukraine and Russia will be to conduct dialogue on efforts to end the war and achieve peaceful solutions.

"War has to be stopped and global food supply chains need to be reactivated," he said.

At the G7 Summit, he cited data from the World Food Program (WFP) showing that at least 323 million people in a number of countries are at risk of a food crisis. The G7 and G20 have a big responsibility to overcome this crisis, he added.

He emphasized the importance of G7 countries support for the reintegration of Ukraines wheat exports and Russias food and fertilizer exports into global supply chains.

 

NAVIGATING THE FOOD CRISIS, WAR by Fardah

 

Jakarta, 27/6/2022 (ANTARA) - Even as the world is trying to recover from the economic downturn triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, a war has broken out in Ukraine and worsened the economic situation and food supply chain disruption in several parts of the globe.

Food security is on the agenda of the G7 Summit for Partner Countries at Schloss Elmau in the Bavarian Alps, Germany, which President Joko Widodo attended on June 2627, 2022.

Germany has invited Indonesia, Argentina, India, Senegal, and South Africa to the summit as partner countries.

The G7 is an informal forum of leading industrialized nations, comprising Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

The grouping was previously called G8 after Russia was accepted as its member in 1998, but it was kicked out in 2014 following a conflict with Ukraine.

Having taken over the G7 presidency from the UK in January 2022, Germany has set progress towards an equitable world as its goal and is focusing discussions on a sustainable planet, economic stability and transformation, healthy lives, and sustainable investments.

Germany wants to use its presidency to foster a sustainable planet, healthy living, investment in a better future, and building a world that is stronger together.

However, Europe is currently witnessing a war in Ukraine following the Russian invasion of February 24, 2022, and has been affected by the impacts of the war, which have included food chain disruption.

The sanctions imposed by the West on Russia have also triggered an energy crisis, with oil and gas supply dwindling in several European countries.