Jokowi Asks The Domestic Industry To Immediately Produce PCR Equipment

President Joko Widodo (Photo: Twitter @jokowi)

JAKARTA - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has asked the domestic industry to immediately produce a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) based COVID-19 testing kit. In fact, the President asked that in the next month it could be mass produced,

"I hope that by the end of May-June it can be produced," Jokowi said when opening a limited meeting of 'Accelerating the Handling of the COVID-19 Pandemic' which was broadcast on the official YouTube account of the Presidential Secretariat, Monday, May 11.

From the reports he obtained, Jokowi said that the Ministry of National Research and Technology / National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) had been able to develop a number of medical devices such as PCR test kits, non-PCR diagnostic tests, and ventilators. Thus, in the future Indonesia will not depend on other countries.

"I ask for innovations that have been made, mass production can be started so that we do not depend on imported products from other countries," said Jokowi, adding that the licensing process for medical medical products must be carried out quickly and immediately produced by the industry under the Ministry of BUMN. or private.

In addition, the President said, a number of other studies such as plasma and stem cell testing for the recovery of COVID-19 patients also showed the same thing. The former governor of DKI Jakarta said that stem cells could later be used to replace lung tissue damaged by the corona virus.

Then, significant progress has also occurred in genome sequencing research and this stage, said Jokowi, is very important.

"Significant progress has also been made in genome sequencing research, this is a very important stage in the next stage to find a vaccine that is suitable for our country," he concluded.