Indonesia Can Enter Endemic Phase under This Condition

Indonesia is ready to conduct the transition from the pandemic to endemic phase if public health awareness increases, Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin has emphasized.

"If the public has understood how to deal with the pandemic, then we are ready to conduct the transition," he remarked at a virtual press conference on the ‘Limited Meeting on PPKM Evaluation’ on Monday, April 4, 2022.

He said he expected that the current improvement in the COVID-19 situation in Indonesia must also be accompanied by responsible acts of the community for curbing the transmission of the virus. "The responsibility of handling the pandemic is in our own hands," he stressed.

According to the Health Ministry, the number of active COVID-19 cases throughout Indonesia has fallen by 5,755 as of April 4, 2022, to reach 90,235.

Meanwhile, the number of additional confirmed cases has reached 1,661, bringing the total number of positive cases since March 2020 -- the 

beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia -- to 6,021,642.

Furthermore, the number of patients who have recovered from the pandemic has increased by 7,355 as of April 4, 2022, bringing the total number of recoveries to 5,776,058.

Earlier, Head of the Task Force for Handling COVID-19, Lieutenant General Suharyanto, expressed the hope that after Eid Al-Fitr this year, there will be no significant increase in COVID-19 cases.

"If the number of the cases keeps on declining and there is no significant increase of cases, perhaps we will consider changing the pandemic status to endemic," he said.

The COVID-19 Task Force has said it expects the Indonesian people to carry out their Ramadan worship well and conduct Eid Al-Fitr homecoming safely while maintaining strict health protocols to protect themselves and their families from the virus by getting booster vaccinations.

Furthermore, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan said that the government plans to implement mass vaccinations in worship places after Tarawih prayers take place to expedite vaccination coverage.