Indonesian Govt Has Worked to Ensure Foreign Tourists are Free from Mpox, Ministry Says

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy has affirmed that the Indonesian government has made several efforts to ensure international tourists are free from mpox to check the transmission of the disease.

Expert staff at the ministry, Nia Niscaya, said that the government has implemented measures to stem mpox transmission, as reflected by checks at international airports and ports.

"The Ministry of Health found several cases in Indonesia and these findings were responded to by the government by bolstering checking at the country's entry gates, including at airports," she informed at a weekly press conference held in an online-offline format in Jakarta on Monday, September 2, 2024.

Following the detection of mpox cases in the country, the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy has also been working with the Indonesia Inbound Tour Operators Association (IINTOA) to ensure foreign tourists' visits to Indonesia continue to run smoothly.

IINTOA co-founder Paul Edmundus Tallo said that his association has not received reports regarding tourist cancelations.

At the press conference, director of health surveillance and quarantine at the Ministry of Health, Achmad Farchany Tri Adryanto, said that the Indonesian government has strengthened preventive measures against mpox spread.

The measures include the installation of thermal scanners at international airports and ports as well as increased visual surveillance by officers.

"We increased surveillance by implementing a health declaration system, SatuSehat Health Pass (SSHP), and this is not an application, but is web-based," he informed.

Adryanto further said that the ministry has coordinated with stakeholders to promote the use of the sshp.kemkes.go.id webpage, which is available in five languages, namely Indonesian, English, French, Mandarin, and Hokkien.

He expressed the hope that foreign tourists will fill in the health pass when entering Indonesia through international airports and ports.

Editor's Note: The title has been changed, previously it was "Indonesian Tourism Ministry Affirms That the Govt Has Made Efforts to Ensure Int'l Tourists Free from Mpox."

ANTARA

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