Minister Of Research And Technology: Puspitek Serpong Becomes The Location For The Development Of Red And White Vaccines For COVID-19

JAKARTA - Minister of Research and Technology (Menristek) Bambang PS Brodjonegoro said the Indonesia Life Sciences Center (ILSC) building in the area of the Research Center for Science and Technology (Puspiptek) Serpong will be used as a research and development center for the Red and White Vaccine.

"The building already exists. Now a lab is being designed inside that can be used on every platform and is also being offered to companies for the line of production," said Minister of Research and Technology Bambang when contacted by Antara, Jakarta, Friday, October 2.

Bambang said, the test for vaccine candidates in animals is planned to be carried out at the biosafety level 3 (BSL-3) laboratory of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI).

Contacted separately, the Chairperson of the Covid-19 Research and Innovation Consortium of the Ministry of Research and Technology (Kemristek) Ali Ghufron Mukti said to accelerate the development of the Red and White Vaccine, several strategic efforts were carried out, ranging from coordination and more frequent meetings with all team members, development activities more intensive vaccines to strengthen the required resources, including the identification of tools and materials needed to accelerate the Red and White Vaccine.

The consortium for the development of the Red and White Vaccine includes various representatives from ministries, such as the Ministry of Health, State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN), non-ministerial government agencies (LPNK), and several universities, such as the University of Indonesia, the Bandung Institute of Technology and Airlangga University.

Ali Ghufron said that several institutions at a certain level that have moved to develop vaccines can run independently at different speeds and cooperate at certain points under the umbrella of the consortium, but the Ministry of Research and Technology provides and strives for laboratories that can be used together.

"We do coordination and communication with stakeholders in producing the Red and White Vaccine intensively," he said.

The triple-helix synergy is also strengthened between LPNK, universities, industry, both BUMN and private as well as government agencies.