Jakarta – About 4 million doses of the Sinovac vaccine landed in Indonesia on Monday, making it the 110th arrival of Covid-19 shots in the country.

"The total amount of vaccines that have arrived in Indonesia now reaches 317,494,660 doses, be it in finished or bulk form," Siti Nadia Tarmizi, the spokeswoman at the Health Ministry, said in a statement on Monday.

With the new shipment, the government ensures that Indonesia has a sufficient vaccine supply. Bolstering the supply will also help the government speed up and expand the national vaccination program, particularly in the regions across Indonesia.

"At the president's behest, we will immediately distribute every finished vaccine that has arrived at the various regions in the country so that the vaccination will run smoothly and pick up the pace. That also goes for the vaccines that have just arrived today," Nadia said.

She then called the public to support the vaccination program while encouraging those who are still unvaccinated to immediately get the Covid-19 jab at the nearest vaccination center or public health facilities.

"To those who have completed the vaccine series, let us all encourage and help our families, relatives, neighbors to get vaccinated. Let us also provide them the correct information about vaccination so that they will be safe from devastating hoaxes," Nadia said.

In addition to securing enough supply, efforts in educating the public – particularly the vaccine-hesitant people – also play a vital role in the vaccination program, according to Nadia.

"Once again, we assert that all Covid-19 vaccines used in Indonesia are safe, effective, and approved by the BPOM [National Food and Drug Monitoring Agency]," Nadia said.

The government is also asking the public to remain disciplined in obeying the health protocols.

The president earlier warned how there had recently been an increase – although small – in the number of cases.

"That should encourage us to be careful and keep our guards up to avoid transmissions, by wearing our masks properly, maintaining a distance, washing hands with running water and soap, and other efforts such as reducing mobility and avoiding crowds," Nadia said.

From January-October 2021, the government has distibuted a total of 235,598,924 Covid-19 vaccine doses, with details as follows:

• CoronaVac 1 ds: 3,000,000
• CoronaVac 2 ds (through purchase agreements): 49,568,476
• CoronaVac 1 ds (grant): 10,723,080
• CoronaVac 2 ds (grant from China): 1,999,376
• Covid-19 Bio Farma: 121,091,300
• AstraZeneca (through Covax, B2B, and grant): 28,527,224
• Moderna: 8,000,160
• Sinopharm (grant from Saudi Arabia): 749,502
• Sinopharm RC (grant from China) 2 ds/vial: 170,000
• Janssen: 450,020
• Pfizer: 18,104,580

Source: https://jakartaglobe.id/special-updates/4-million-sinovac-vaccine-doses-land-in-indonesi