Note, Starting 2022, Sinovac Vaccine Only For Ages of 6-11 Years

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Health prioritizes the use of the Sinovac type of COVID-19 vaccine only for groups of children aged 6 to 11 years starting January 2022.

"We encourage the Sinovac vaccine to be aimed at children aged 6-11 years, so we prioritize children," said the Ministry of Health's COVID-19 Vaccination Spokesperson Siti Nadia Tarmizi in Jakarta, quoted by Antara, Monday, December 13.

Nadia said that currently, only Sinovac has obtained an emergency use permit from the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM) for COVID-19 vaccination aged 6-11 years. targets other than the age of 6 to 11 years.

"Starting next year, Sinovac is only for ages of 6-11. Other vaccines available in Indonesia are prioritized for other targets," said Maxi when delivering a virtual press statement, Sunday, December 12.

Maxi said the COVID-19 vaccination for children aged 6 to 11 years will begin on Tuesday, December 14 with the target number of vaccinations reaching 26 million more children based on the 2020 population census data.

"We will vaccinate all children aged 6 to 11 years, based on the data, there are 26.8 million in total," he said.

The implementation of vaccinations for children, said Maxi, is in accordance with the Presidential Instruction to immediately carry out vaccinations for children 6 to 11. In addition, the Indonesian Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (ITAGI) has also issued recommendations for the implementation of COVID-19 vaccination for children aged 6 to 11 years.

"This is really done because we want to accelerate the vaccination of all residents in Indonesia and also prevent the transmission of COVID-19," he said.