COVID-19 is a global situation where it has impacted people all over the globe from every layer of society. The event in the past year has brought us to the development of vaccines. The Government of Indonesia is targeting to vaccinate 181,5 million of the population by March next year. As of now, the government is targeting the completion of vaccination on teachers and education personnel will be done by July 2021. After a few discussions with the Provincial Health Office (PHO) and Provincial Education Office (PEO), there has been a gap in communication between synchronizing roles and responsibilities between the two offices. This is where C4D’s role can come into play and become a bridge between not only these two specific offices but also other involved offices in South Sulawesi, teacher’s associations, community, and civil society organizations.
Based on the data from the joint ministries, as of 19 April 2021, only 16% of teachers in South Sulawesi have received the 1st dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, while only 3.4% of them have received the 2nd dose. After a little bit over a month, the vaccine uptake has not been significant due to the lack of supply during the month of May. However, the supply is no longer an issue as of now. The newest data from the joint ministries shows that as of 23 May 2021, only 24% (54,890) of teachers and education personnel in South Sulawesi have received the 1st dose of COVID-19 vaccine, while only 14% (33,077) of them who have received the 2nd dose. If we follow this trend, we will only reach 31% of teachers getting the 1st dose and 25% of teachers getting the 2nd dose of COVID-19 vaccine by early July 2021. Therefore, with only less than a month left, well-organized collective work from all relevant counterparts is essential to ensure the implementation of vaccines for teachers and school personnel goes according to plan and can be done on time.
In addition to the teachers’ vaccination program, this program document outlines UNICEF FO Makassar’s support for the Government of Indonesia’s response to COVID-19 in the area of risk communication and community engagement (RCCE), focusing on the introduction, roll, and promotion of the COVID-19 vaccine and routine immunization throughout wider communities in the long run. The RCCE work on the promotion of key COVID-19 behaviors and preventive practices will remain and continue as strategic interventions to mitigate the pandemic’s impact.
The RCCE program focus mainly in South Sulawesi area, mainly Makassar, Maros, Bulukumba, Takalar and Bone. These areas are chosen based on some considerations: Makassar, Maros, Bulukumba, and Takalar are priority areas based on the data obtained by the internal UNICEF vaccination team. Program duration from August 2021 to March 2022.