Jakarta, IO – The Indonesian government currently believes that there is no urgency in restricting travel to Singapore, even though there is a spike in Covid-19 cases the island-state.
Health Ministry spokesperson Mohammad Syahril said this decision was taken based on the information published by the Singapore Ministry of Health. He also assured that the situation is still largely under control.
“Based on the current risk assessment, there is no urgency to impose travel restrictions to or from Singapore,” said Syahril, per CNN Indonesia, Fri (24/5). “The Covid-19 situation in Indonesia is still under control so there is no urgency for the government to restrict the people’s mobility.”
Nevertheless, Syahril said the Health Quarantine Center (BKK) will continue to carry out screening for travelers, including by implementing Influenza Like Illness (ILI) and Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI) surveillance measures at entry points.
Furthermore, Syahril explained that endemic status does not mean that Covid-19 has disappeared altogether, but rather it means that it is under control. This means that there is still the possibility of the emergence of new variants or subvariants that have the potential to cause an increase in cases or deaths.
The public is also advised to continue implementing health protocols and immediately get booster vaccinations, especially for at-risk groups.
“In addition to the variants currently in circulation, KP.1 and KP.2, the transmission rate is low and there is no evidence that it causes severe illness. However, we must remain alert,” he stressed. (un)