Gov’t Extends Micro-Scale Activity Restrictions until 19 April 2021

The Government has announced it will extend the implementation of Micro-Scale Activity Restrictions (PPKM Mikro) from 6 to 19 April 2021.

In the fifth phase of PPKM Mikro, the area of ​​implementation will be expanded to five additional provinces, namely Aceh, Riau, South Sumatra, North Kalimantan, and Papua. This expansion is regulated in Instruction of Minister of Home Affairs Number 7 of 2021 on Extension of Micro-Scale Activity Restrictions and Optimizing Corona Virus Disease Management Post at Village and Sub-District Levels to Control the Transmission of Corona Virus Disease 2019, which was issued on 5 April 2021.

In the previous period, PPKM Mikro has been implemented in 15 provinces, including Jakarta, Banten, West Java, Special Region of Yogyakarta, Central Java, East Java, Bali, North Sumatra, East Kalimantan, South Sulawesi, North Sulawesi, South Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, East Nusa Tenggara, and West Nusa Tenggara.

As stated in the instruction, with the addition of five provinces, a total of 20 provinces can determine and add priority areas in their respective regencies/cities.

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto, who also helms the COVID-19 Handling and National Economic Recovery Working Committee (KPCPEN), said that the previous parameters are still used in this matter.

“The Government has expanded the implementation of PPKM Mikro based on the data related to cases of recovery, death, active, and the total cumulative cases. Thus, the Government adds five more regions, namely North Kalimantan, Aceh, South Sumatra, Riau, and Papua. Therefore, there are twenty provinces in total participating in the PPKM Mikro,” Airlangga said, Monday (5/4).

According to the instruction, PPKM Mikro is implemented by taking into account the criteria for risk zonation down to the neighborhood level. Meanwhile, other regions that do not implement the activity restrictions are urged to still raise awareness of COVID-19, intensify dissemination, and take action against violators of health protocols.

Airlangga further stated that in the fifth phase of PPKM Mikro, the Government has changed the criteria for risk zonation at the neighborhood level. Based on the criteria, a neighborhood is categorized into red zone if there are more than five houses that have confirmed positive cases, a neighborhood with 3-5 houses that have confirmed positive cases is categorized into orange zone, a neighborhood with 1-2 houses that have confirmed positive cases is categorized into yellow zone, while a neighborhood that has zero confirmed positive case is categorized into green zone.

“This criteria has been improved because we expect to prevent further transmission of COVID-19,” he said. (FID/PR of Ministry of Home Affairs/UN) (RIF/MMB)