Indonesian president receives 1st Chinese COVID-19 vaccine shot

JAKARTA - Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Wednesday received the COVID-19 vaccine shot developed by China's biopharmaceutical company Sinovac Biotech.

The president, widely known as Jokowi, is the first Indonesian vaccinated to show that the vaccine is safe.

After the president, the Indonesian military chief, the national police chief and the Health Minister, among others, were also vaccinated.

Indonesia, through its Food and Drug Control Agency (BPOM), on Monday approved Sinovac Biotech's COVID-19 vaccine for use.

The agency issued an emergency use authorization for the vaccine after interim results of its late-stage trials in the country which showed an efficacy rate of 65.3 percent.

As of Tuesday afternoon, Indonesia had recorded a total of 846,765 COVID-19 infections, according to the Health Ministry.

The virus has claimed more than 24,000 lives across the the country, the ministry said.