Surabaya, East Java (ANTARA) - East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa has urged prospective Hajj pilgrims from the province to get fully vaccinated as it is one of the requirements set by the Saudi Arabian government for pilgrims.
"All Hajj pilgrims from East Java who have not been fully vaccinated are urged to get the vaccine at the nearest health facility," she said here on Saturday.
According to data from the Integrated Hajj Computerized System for the Health Sector (Siskohatkes), as of May 20, 2022, 16,050 of the total 19,210 pilgrims or 83.55 percent of pilgrims from East Java have received the meningitis vaccination, she noted.
Meanwhile, the COVID-19 vaccination coverage among the pilgrims has reached 90.63 percent for the first dose, 86.64 percent for the second dose, and 63.05 percent for the third dose.
The governor explained that the vaccination is aimed at preventing the transmission of infectious diseases.
"This is important because infectious diseases have the potential to be brought outside and into Indonesia," she said.
She affirmed that the East Java government, through its Health Office, is continuing to assist, monitor, and provide feedback regarding the vaccination coverage to the district and city health offices on a daily basis in order to increase coverage.
Parawansa also asked all regional offices of the Religious Affairs Ministry in East Java to provide detailed data on unvaccinated prospective pilgrims and provide them direct assistance.
"Prospective Hajj pilgrims are welcomed to equip themselves with other vaccines such as the influenza vaccine for better health protection, but at their own expense," she added.
Earlier, Saudi Arabia had announced that the 2022 Hajj pilgrimage will be open for one million pilgrims from various countries.
Although it has allowed foreign pilgrims to undertake the Hajj pilgrimage, Saudi Arabia has laid down two conditions for them this year. First, pilgrims must not be older than 65 years and must have received a full dose of any COVID-19 vaccine approved by the Saudi Ministry of Health.
Second, pilgrims traveling from abroad must have a certificate showing a negative PCR result, with the test taken no more than 72 hours prior to departure.
