The emergency fund can help countries affected by the pandemic so that it can be used not only for COVID-19.
Indonesian Minister of Health Budi Gunadi Sadikin conveyed Indonesia's proposal for the establishment of an ASEAN emergency fund for the pandemic. The emergency fund can help countries affected by the pandemic so that it can be used not only for COVID-19 but also for future pandemics.
"For ASEAN, we currently have a special emergency fund for COVID-19, namely the ASEAN COVID-19 Response Fund, which is facilitated by the ASEAN Secretariat. Fundraising is voluntary and open to support from partner countries," he said.
These funds can be used to support preparedness and response, including funding capacity building projects for ASEAN member countries.
Since it was adopted at the end of 2020, to date, 30 million pledged funds have been collected, of which 25 million have been collected and 10 million have been used for vaccine procurement. Indonesia's contribution is 150 thousand US dollars.
"The advanced emergency fund is the G20, there has been approval from the G20 countries to hold the ASEAN emergency fund. Because actually we also think that there are emerging funds in the world, so for the ASEAN scale, we can follow and synergize with the current mechanism. This is for COVID-19," he said in a written statement, Sunday (15/5).
The Ministry of Health will also complete the establishment of the ASEAN Center for Public Health Emergencies and Emerging Diseases (ACPHEED). Currently, we are still in the stage of cleaning up the centers for prevention, detection (surveillance), and response first.
"Later, prevention, surveillance, detection and response have been formed. We will discuss the need for funds for the pandemic, beyond COVID-19 in the ASEAN region," added Minister of Health Budi.
"If it has been formed, God willing, President Jokowi at the time of Indonesia's Chair of ASEAN in 2023, will be able to launch the fund specifically to help countries that are struggling when experiencing health crises," he said. (Ministry of Health, Antara, photo: illustration)
