MALARIA PERDHAKI, Jakarta – The Indonesian Health Service Work Association (Perdhaki) held the National Malaria Jamboree from Sunday, December 17, 2023, to Monday, December 18, 2023, at the Discovery Ancol Hotel, Jakarta. This event was attended by hundreds of participants from East Nusa Tenggara, Papua, West Papua, and Southwest Papua. The 2023 National Malaria Jamboree carried the theme “Reaching the Unreachable.” The event aims to enhance the capacity and function of malaria cadres, as well as to establish coordination, synergy, and commitment among cadres at the village and district levels to jointly implement the malaria-free program. Otji File, Project Manager of the Malaria Program at Perdhaki SR Kupang, stated that the 2023 National Malaria Jamboree is expected to motivate efforts to achieve a malaria-free East Nusa Tenggara by 2028.

Otji File stated that Sumba Island remains one of the regions in East Nusa Tenggara endemic to malaria. Therefore, more intensive efforts are needed to reduce malaria cases in Sumba. “With the 2023 National Malaria Jamboree, I am optimistic that the target of a malaria-free East Nusa Tenggara by 2028 can be achieved,” said Otji File. According to Otji, malaria cadres who have received training in accordance with Ministry of Health Regulation Number 41 of 2018 have the authority to take blood samples, provide medication, and monitor patients until they recover. In addition, they are also responsible for educating the community about malaria through health promotion and village discussions. “Through the program strategy with village discussions, the community will identify the problems in their village. The leaders of the village are involved, those who have authority and power. This way, they can understand issues related to malaria handling and think about what actions to take to make their village malaria-free,” Otji explained.

The Director General of Disease Prevention and Control (P2P) at the Indonesian Ministry of Health, Maxi Rein Rondonuwu, also conveyed a similar message. He stated that Indonesia has set a target to be malaria-free by 2030. Therefore, more intensive efforts are needed to reduce malaria cases in Indonesia. “This jamboree activity is expected to be one of the efforts to achieve the malaria-free target by 2030,” said Rondonuwu.

Meanwhile, the Head of Perdhaki, Drs. Dr. Antonius Roy Tjiong, M. Hum, stated that the National Malaria Jamboree was held as a form of appreciation for the work done by malaria cadres so far. Antonius Roy also emphasized that Perdhaki will conduct studies to improve Perdhaki’s programs moving forward in collaboration with the Ministry of Health’s Health Polytechnic. Meanwhile, the Project Manager of the Malaria Program at Perdhaki, Dr. Yohanes Ari Hermawan, said that the Perdhaki Malaria program started in 2010, initially covering Kalimantan and Sulawesi. However, it turned out that regions with high endemic rates were in Eastern Indonesia, so since 2015 the focus has shifted to Eastern Indonesia. From 2015 until now, Perdhaki has been entrusted to manage activities related to community empowerment. The implementation is carried out through the development of malaria cadres.

This news was published on RCTI+. Link: https://www.rctiplus.com/news/detail/flores-inews-id/4163451/perdhaki-optimis-target-ntt-bebas-malaria-pada-2028-dapat-tercapai