March 15, 2022
PPKM extended to 21 March + Govt to extend Visa On Arrival to other arrival ports + 6,400 rooms in Lombok are still available for MotoGP enthusiasts + more
Good morning!
Welcome to The Bali Beat for Tuesday, March 15. In today’s edition, we have another extension of Indonesia’s PPKM regulations, with nowhere in Bali moving to Level 1. The national government has flagged extending Bali’s Visa on Arrival trial to ports of entry outside Bali. Over the water in Lombok, we have plenty of news on the approaching MotoGP. Scroll down for the full wrap on what has been happening in Bali and Indonesia since you last heard from us.
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Weather & Tides
Today’s Weather for Southern Bali
Today’s Tides
Meteorology, Climatology & Geophysics Council (Link)
Tide table from Tide-forecast.com.
Daily Covid Update
National Figures
Local Figures
The Big News
“PPKM Extended to 21 March” from Detik (Indonesian): The government has issued an extension of the PPKM for Java-Bali, and Outside Java-Bali. Director General of Regional Administration of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Safrizal said on Tuesday the condition of the Coronavirus pandemic in Indonesia has improved. Minister of Home Affairs Tito Karnavian, issued Imendagri number 16 of 2022 for the implementation of PPKM in Java and Bali. PPKM is effective from 15 to 21 March. "There is an increase in the number of areas that are at Level 2 from the original 37 regions to 55 regions. Likewise with Level 1 until now there are no areas in Java and Bali that enter level 1," he said.
“Luhut Says Government to Expand "Visa on Arrival"” from Antara Bali (Indonesian): Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan said the government plans to expand the application of Visa on Arrival at other airports in Indonesia to boost foreign tourist arrivals. "The government will also apply Visa on Arrival at several other airports, such as Jakarta and Surabaya," he said on Monday. Luhut said that the application of the Visa on Arrival which had been in place since a week ago in Bali was considered capable of encouraging an increase in incoming foreign tourists.
“There Are Still 6,400 Rooms in Lombok to Accommodate MotoGP Spectators” from Republika (Indonesian): Prospective spectators of MotoGP and tourists from various regions can still get lodging rooms around Lombok, with the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy saying there are still 6,492 rooms in Lombok. Deputy for Destination and Infrastructure Development, Kemenparekraf, Vincent Jemadu, said that the most filled rooms are in the Gili area around 2,635 rooms. "So don't worry, there are still 6,492 rooms in Lombok," Vincent said on Monday. Meanwhile, for the accommodation around the Mandalika circuit area, both hotels and homestays are 100% full. Lodging that is still available in Mandalika is camping ground Bobobox and Eiger with arounnd 1,300 tents. "For millennials or tourists who are touring, there is camping ground accommodation that can be used to stay," he said.
Context: In other MotoGP news, Pelni has prepared a long-distance ferry for accommodation purposes, while marine- and air-patrols have been increased. Elsewhere, while Covid-19 cases are reportedly under control (Indonesian), residents are being asked to follow health protocols even though Central Lombok is now considered a Green Zone (Indonesian) with second dose vaccinations at over 80% (Indonesian). As the MotoGP crews begin to arrive (Indonesian), ferry traffic from Padang Bai is picking up (Indonesian) as fans make their way to Lombok, despite there being ongoing concerns about ticket availability (Indonesian). There are also plans to use the event as a vehicle for showcasing traditional fare. Reports are again suggesting the crowd will be capped to 60,000 (Indonesian), after yesterday saying it would be 100,000 (Indonesian).
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Other Headlines
“Zero-quarantine Trial Boosts Foreign Tourist Arrivals in Bali Says Gov't” from Antara: The zero-quarantine policy, which is currently under trial in Bali, has bolstered foreign tourist arrivals to the province in the past week, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan has said. "According to the evaluation result of the zero-quarantine policy implemented in Bali for the last one week, the number of foreign tourist arrivals has soared significantly," he said on Monday. The minister pointed out that the COVID-19 positivity rate among foreign arrivals has been recorded at just one percent. Around 449 foreign tourists have applied for a tourist visa through the visa-on-arrival scheme since last March 7, and the authority has recorded a total of IDR 224 million (US$15,600) in non-tax state revenue, the coordinating minister said.
Context: A reported 3,419 international passengers arrived at Bali’s airport between March 1 and 13 (Indonesian). Another report, while suggesting a different arrival total, noted 20 inbound passengers (17 foreigners and 3 Indonesians) had tested positive for Covid-19 (Indonesian) over the same period.
Vaccination Update
“Millions of Vaccines Expired Not Due to Quality Says Health Ministry” from Antara: The Health Ministry has extended the validity period of 18 million vaccines that were set to expire in March this year as they are still in good quality though their emergency-use authorization has expired. "When we say that the vaccines have expired, they have not expired in terms of factory quality, but because their emergency-use authorization has expired," the ministry's spokesperson Siti Nadia Tarmizi said on Monday. Last week, the government extended the validity period of around 18 million COVID-19 vaccines.
More...
Nation: “14.6 Million Indonesians Receive Booster Shot” from Antara
Province: “Denpasar City Government Aggressively Vaccinates Boosters to Residents” from Antara Bali (Indonesian)
Health Protocols (Prokes) & Health Services
“Indonesia Will Hopefully Avert BA.2-related Infection Spike Says Minister” from Antara: Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin has expressed the hope that Indonesia will not see an increase in COVID-19 cases linked to the BA.2 sub-variant of Omicron. Recently, Hong Kong, South Korea, and the UK have reported an increase in infections caused by the sub-variant. In the last two months, the government sequenced 8,032 genomes, Sadikin informed, and the result of the sequencing showed that a portion of the Omicron BA.2 sub-variant is already dominant in Indonesia. To prevent an increase in the number of cases and deaths, the minister called for the acceleration of vaccinations, especially among older adults. "Almost all the deaths that occurred in Hong Kong that filled the hospitals occurred in older adults. This is a precious lesson for us," he said.
More...
Nation: “Indonesia Focusing on Entering Covid-19 Deceleration Phase” from Antara
Nation: “Expert Alarmed at Public Disinterest Towards Covid-19 Testing” from Tempo
Denpasar: “Disobedient Prokes People Still Found in Denpasar” from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
Economy & Infrastructure
“Optimism Around Bali's Economic Recovery Weakening” from Bali Bisnis (Indonesian): The optimism of the people of Bali towards economic recovery in February 2022 has weakened due to the increase in Omicron cases that affect the tourism sector. Bank Indonesia Representative Office Survey of Bali Province in February 2022 Consumer Confidence Index (IKK) plummeted to 97.25 from 105.9 in January. The head of Bank Indonesia Bali, Trisno Nugroho, explained that the weakening of consumer confidence in Bali is in line with at the national level. "Weakening consumer confidence in the economic recovery is also happening at the national level. The national Consumer Confidence Index (IKKL) in February 2022 amounted to 113.1, lower than January 2022 with a value of 119.6. This decrease occurred due to the increase in omicron cases in February 2022," Trisno said on Monday.
More...
Nation: “Indonesia's Economy to Return to Higher Track in Mid-term” from Antara
Nation: “Indonesia Should Consider Relaxation of Food Imports” from Antara
Nation: “BI Projects 14.96% Growth in Consumption of Halal Products” from Antara
Education
“Finally, 100% Face-to-Face Learning” from Radar Bali (Indonesian): Karangasem Regency finally held a 100% face-to-face learning on Monday for all levels of education. The implementation of full PTM after the development of covid-19 cases subsided. Head of Youth education and Sports Office of Karangasem Regency, I Wayan Sutrisna confirmed that the implementation of PTM 100% was carried out after seeing the development of Covid-19 in Karangasem Regency which is now at level 2. "Yes, it is true, seeing the development of covid-19 cases that have hit. From today it also happens that our PTS (midterm assessment) is back to implement PTM 100%," Sutrisna said.
Bali Reopening
“Jetstar Australia Lands at the Bali Airport” from Coconuts Bali
Of Interest
“Two Foreigners Face 12 Years Behind Bars for Seminyak Villa Robbery” from Coconuts Bali
“Governor Koster Prepares "Bali Digital Festival" for Creative Community” from Antara Bali (Indonesian)
“Bali Immigration to Deport Nigerian for Violating Residence Permit” from Republika (Indonesian)
“Hoping the Russia-Ukraine War Ends, Dozens of Bali Activists Hold Joint Prayer at World Peace Gong” from Tribun Bali (Indonesian)
“Skeletal Remains of Spanish Man Found in Dilapidated Nusa Dua House” from Coconuts Bali
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