JAKARTA: Indonesia will mobilise volunteers to fight Covid-19 in villages across the nation, funding the initiative with part of a US$4.4 billion rural budget.
The volunteer squads will assist authorities in increasing awareness of the pandemic in 75,000 villages across the archipelago, besides enforcing social distancing and being on the lookout for those with symptoms.
A Village Development of Disadvantage Regions and Transmigration Ministry official, Eko Sri Haryanto, said this on Tuesday, according to The Jakarta Post.
There is concern about a potential spike in infections as thousands of workers, most employed informally, begin returning to their villages from the cities after losing their jobs.
More, too, are set to head home when the nation celebrates Hari Raya Aidilfitri in May.
“We need to form responsive village teams, as this disease has no cure yet and most villages have no easy access to health facilities,” Haryanto said.
Authorities are stepping up efforts to contain the spread of the disease nationwide and President Joko Widodo, who has resisted calls for a lockdown to combat the virus, has ordered strict enforcement of social distancing and monitoring to limit its spread in rural Indonesia.
The capital here and its surrounding areas currently account for about two-thirds of the nation’s positive cases and fatalities.