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Private vaccination scheme misses mark
Following Indonesian government's public health gaffe with the self-paid vaccine scheme, the pressure is back on Kadin to step up and drive the private Gotong Royong vaccine program.
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A general view of the skyline of Jakarta on August 5, 2021. (Reuters/Ajeng Dinar Ulfiana)
A
ll eyes are now back on the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) to fix the problems in the Gotong Royong COVID-19 vaccination program, after the government canceled a self-paid scheme that backfired when it was announced on July 11.
The Gotong Royong program was initially launched in May to allow for private vaccination programs amid the slowdown in the government’s public vaccination drive, primarily due to global shortages of COVID-19 vaccines.
But progress in the private vaccination program has also been beset by issues in coordination, distribution and supply, raising doubts as to whether Kadin could achieve its goal of inoculating 22 million private employees and their families as set by President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo.
In an apparent effort to alleviate the pressure on Kadin, the government expanded the Gotong Royong program in July by allowing state-owned pharmaceutical company PT Kimia Farma to offer China’s Sinopharm vaccine through a self-paid scheme at selected clinics.
The public and health experts lambasted the plan as an unethical attempt to commercialize the national vaccination rollout during a public health emergency, prompting the government to cancel the self-paid scheme at the 11th hour and return sole responsibility for the Gotong Royong program to Kadin.
Read also: Self-paid vaccine plan sparks anger
On Monday, Kadin deputy chairwoman Shinta Kamdani called on more private companies to join the Gotong Royong program, saying that vaccine supply was no longer an issue.
