Launch of Vaccination Program for Pregnant Women in Jakarta, Anies: This is Gift of Independence for Pregnant Women

Vaccination for pregnant women has been taken place in various parts of Indonesia today, including in Jakarta. The launch was carried out on the courtyard of Jakarta City Hall, Thursday (8/19).

Today's program launch, God willing, will answer their anxiety and at the same time a gift of independence for all pregnant women throughout Indonesia

This program is effective after the issuance of Circular Letter of Ministry of Health No. HK.02.01/I/2007/2021 on COVID-19 Vaccination for Pregnant Women and Screening Adjustments in COVID-19 Vaccination Implementation. Jakarta Governor, Anies Baswedan said that vaccination program for pregnant women felt special because it took place in August.

"August is time for us to celebrate independence, but it also makes all pregnant women in Indonesia happy. With the issuance of Minister of Health Regulation on August 2, it answers the anxiety for months of every pregnant women of all families in Indonesia," he said as quoted from Jakarta PPID Press Release.

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He explained that since the start of vaccination program in early 2021, pregnant women group hasn't been the priority, because it is still being studied for their safety after taking vaccination. However, Central Government continues to collaborate with Regional Government to review thus the preparation of vaccination for pregnant women can be implemented.

"Pregnant women are in a very complicated situation. In the current situation, they must comply with health protocols. This is their key but the risks they face are quite huge. Now, they can be vaccinated with SOP. Then today's program launch, God willing, will answer their anxiety and at the same time a gift of independence for all pregnant women throughout Indonesia," he stated.

He assessed that challenges faced by Jakarta are not simple, even now there are 1,754 pregnant women who have received their first vaccination. All of these efforts, he added, require cooperation thus vaccination can be done as soon as possible.

"When we experience the pandemic in Jakarta, one of things that we often did was to go around to various health centers and hospitals. One of the places that we always check is maternity wards. We, in Jakarta, are ready to serve pregnant women for labor and delivery. The most important thing is that we have to be serious about dealing with pregnant women, because they are the ones who will give birth to the new generation. The protection is not only at birth, but also during pregnancy process," he said.  

He also hopes vaccination can be strengthened by studies from various universities to conduct research and monitoring of every pregnant women who have been vaccinated. According to him, results from this study can be a strong foundation, because it has a comprehensive data on vaccinations for pregnant women.

"That way, we hope in the future, policies that we make can be done according to the facts on the ground. So, we are very grateful to be able to provide certainty for pregnant women. Later we will prepare the west side and in Jakarta City Hall, and all places to Jakarta to complete it. Thank God, today 9.3 million people have been vaccinated in Jakarta. We hope we can complete this vaccination as soon as possible," he conveyed.

For information, this launch also took place in cities/regions, such as Ambon, Manado, Pontianak, Padang, Bangka Belitung, Bandung, Yogyakarta, Surabaya, Malang, and Kupang. This event was also attended by Coordinating Minister for Economy, Airlangga Hartanto; Jakarta Vice Governor, Ahmad Riza Patria and his subordinates; IBI Chairperson, Emi Nurjasmi; PP POGI Head, Ari Kusuma; BKKBN Head, Hasto Wardoyo; and representative of Salim Group, Franciscus Welirang.