Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Muhadjir Effendy said Indonesia is a country that is endemic to dengue fever (DBD). Dengue mosquitoes live and breed in tropical and subtropical climates like Indonesia and people are at high risk of getting infected with dengue fever.
“In an effort to eradicate and prevent the spread of DBD, mosquito larvae controllers (Jumantik) play a crucial role. Jumantik officers are tasked with monitoring mosquito larvae in residential areas, especially areas that are prone to having mosquito nests, such as bathtubs because they are rarely drained, pools of water in used cans or packaged drinks. These mosquito nests must be eradicated to prevent DBD,” Muhadjir Effendy said in a speech read out by Deputy Coordinating Minister for the Improvement of Health and Population Quality, Y.B Satya Sananugraha, during the opening of an educational seminar called Strengthening Health Services by Increasing the Role of Jumantik Officers to Mitigate DBD Cases in Indonesia, Tuesday (29/8).
In an effort to mitigate DBD in Indonesia, Godrej Consumer Products Indonesia’s HIT, KlikDokter and the Coordinating Ministry for Human Development and Culture held an educational activity for Jumantik officers on how to eradicate mosquito nests and prevent DBD. During this activity, they also launched the DBD Eradication Guide for the Home and Office E-Book.
“HIT’s major goal is extremely clear, which is to create an Indonesia that is free from mosquitoes and DBD. Through our innovative and effective products, HIT strives to protect Indonesians from the threat of these disease carrying mosquitoes,” Godrej Consumer Products Indonesia Director Basuki explained.
In addition to manufacturing effective products, HIT has also come up with a number of real initiatives to realize this major goal, starting from door-to-door sampling, offering products at affordable prices to partnerships with various institutions and organizations in a concurrent effort to combat dengue fever.
One of collaborations in achieving its larger goal, HIT is partnering with Jumantik, who play a crucial role in dengue fever (DBD) prevention and control.
Jumantik officers play a role in monitoring the environment to identify potential mosquito nests, spreading information to communities about the importance of preventing dengue fever and aiding activities aimed at eradicating mosquito nests in homes and the areas surrounding homes.
In society, Jumantik officers are agents of change as they educate people about the importance of maintaining cleanliness in the environment, eradicate spots that could become mosquito nests and report conditions that require further action from the authorities. (Siswantini Suryandari)