The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) has approved US$262 million in financing for a health project in Indonesia.
The project aims to improve the availability, accessibility, quality and delivery of health services by upgrading national referral hospitals in five provinces in Indonesia.
The hospitals included in the project are the National Cancer Center and Dharmais and Persahabatan hospitals in Jakarta; Dr. Hasan Sadikin Hospital in Bandung, West Java; Dr. Sardjito Hospital in Yogyakarta; Sanglah Hospital in Denpasar; and Dr. Wahidin Sudirohusodo Hospital in Makassar, South Sulawesi. Upon completion, the project is expected to contribute to a 25 percent increase in inpatient and outpatient services in the hospitals.
The project mainly revolves around providing the necessary infrastructure, equipment and capacity enhancements in the referral hospitals to enhance healthcare delivery while contributing to additional critical activities dedicated to improving emergency response and information systems in health care.
IsDB Group Regional Hub Indonesia head Saleh Jelassi said that the project was the result of a three-year collaboration involving IsDB, the Health Ministry, the Finance Ministry and the National Development Planning Board (Bappenas).
“Once completed, the project will increase the country’s total hospital bed capacity by nearly 1,000 and result in the provision of over 230,000 square meters of new building space that will improve treatment and laboratory facilities in hospitals, while also enhancing their emergency preparedness capabilities,” Jelassi said in a press statement recently.
The project also aims to support Indonesia’s efforts to achieve one of the Sustainable Development Goals: “Ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all age groups”.
It is also expected to provide faster and improved services for infant and maternal care and cancer and respiratory treatments.
Separately on Tuesday, Japan offered Indonesia 50 billion yen (US$473.1 million) in loans to mitigate the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga announced the offer after a bilateral meeting with President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo in Bogor, West Java.
The Indonesian government has earmarked Rp 695.2 trillion ($47.25 billion) to finance the pandemic response and to support the economy.
Several multilateral organizations including the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank have committed to providing loans for the country.
The government’s foreign debt rose 3.4 percent year-on-year to $200.1 billion in August, according to Bank Indonesia. (iwa)
Editor’s note: This article is part of a public campaign by the COVID-19 task force to raise people’s awareness about the pandemic.
