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Tanoto Foundation donates 500 tons of oxygen for COVID-19 patients
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Sendoff: The Tanoto Foundation collaborated with RAPP of April Group to donate 500 tons of liquid oxygen (Courtesy of Tanoto Foundation)
T
o support Indonesia’s efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, the Tanoto Foundation has announced that it is donating 500 tons of oxygen to hospitals across the country, which have been badly affected by a shortage of oxygen supplies.
The oxygen is produced by Pangkalan Kerinci, Riau-based pulp and paper manufacturer APRIL Group’s PT Riau Andalan Pulp & Paper (RAPP), which has designated a part of its oxygen plant facility for pulp bleaching to produce medical oxygen.
A total of five shipments, each carrying 100 tons of oxygen, will be sent from Pangkalan Kerinci to Jakarta, with the first shipment taking place on July 9 and arriving in a symbolic ceremony at the Health Ministry’s headquarters on July 12.
Received symbolically by the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), the agency’s General Secretary expressed his gratitude on behalf of the Indonesian government for the Tanoto Foundation’s support.
“The oxygen will be immediately distributed to hospitals in dire need, especially on the island of Java. We have received this support and will distribute them immediately though the Health Ministry,” he said, adding that he hoped the oxygen could reduce the number of fatalities due to a lack of oxygen supplies.
According to Sumarjaya, the Health Ministry’s General Bureau Head, 48 tons of the oxygen is earmarked for Jakarta, 46 tons for West Java and the remaining 6 tons for Yogyakarta.
Data from the Health Ministry shows that the surge in COVID-19 cases in recent weeks has coincided with a sharp increase in demand for medical oxygen, from 400 tons per day to 2,500 tons.
At the same time, the ministry also noted that oxygen manufacturing facilities on Java had a capacity of 1,400 tons per day, whereas the entirety of Java and Bali required 2,600 tons of oxygen per day, creating a gap of 700 tons.
The Industry Ministry has coordinated closely with several companies across various industries that are able to produce medical oxygen to ramp up the supply of oxygen for COVID-19 patients in the country.
Industry Minister Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita expressed his appreciation for the Tanoto Foundation and its partner PT RAPP. The Tanoto Foundation is an independent philanthropy organization establi hed by Sukanto Tanoto and Tinah Bingei Tanoto in 1981 and has previously partnered with APRIL Group and PT RAPP on a number of community development, human capital development and COVID-19 relief programs.
Deputy Health Minister Dante Saksono Harbuwono also expressed his appreciation for the donation made by the Tanoto Foundation and APRIL Group, especially amid the recent rise in COVID-19 cases across the country.
He acknowledged the gap between the oxygen production output on Java and the required amount of oxygen on Java and Bali. Because of this, he said, the Tanoto Foundation’s donation was very much appreciated by everyone involved.
“500 tons is not merely a number, but rather about what we can do with those 500 tons, as we can reduce the number of deaths in hospitals, isolation facilities and homes,” he said during the official ceremony for the first oxygen shipment.
“We thank the Tanoto Foundation and APRIL Group for providing oxygen for our hospitals on Java, which are treating patients with serious to severe symptoms. The pandemic calls for the collective effort of all existing stakeholders, such as the government, the private sector and the people.”
Anderson Tanoto, a member of the Tanoto Foundation Board of Trustees, said that when the foundation learned about the oxygen shortage in hospitals for COVID-19 patients, they felt the need to quickly respond by carrying out a swift distribution of oxygen produced by PT RAPP to Java.
“I would like to express my gratitude for the support from the Industry Ministry and the Health Ministry, which has facilitated the transportation and distribution of the oxygen in less than 36 hours to Java. We hope that the donation can support the treatment of COVID-19 patients and save precious lives,” he said.
Tanoto Foundation Communications Director told The Jakarta Post that in the next five weeks, the foundation would ensure the distribution of the remaining 400 tons of oxygen to the Health Ministry so as to support hospitals on Java and Bali.
“We are continuously coordinating with the government through the Health Ministry to explore other government priorities we can support,” he said.
In 2020, the Tanoto Foundation donated 1 million masks, 1 million pairs of gloves, 100,000 pieces of personal protective equipment, 3,000 goggles and 10,200 PCR test kits to the BNPB. It also partnered with the Temasek Foundation to donate a MGI RNA extraction machine, a PCR test machine and 10,000 PCR test kits.
