With officials on course to establish the much-touted COVID-19 “green zones” in Bali through a targeted mass vaccination program, Denpasar Mayor I Gusti Ngurah Jaya Negara said that expatriates staying in the designated areas might also be eligible for vaccination.
Citing the many expatriates residing in Sanur, the mayor’s office is working on the matter.
Jaya Negara confirmed, Sanur, Ubud, and Nusa Dua have been officially designated to be green zones by the Bali provincial government.
“We are coordinating this matter because this vaccine is free from the national budget if we can administer it for foreign nationals. This is something that requires coordination,” Jaya Negara said.
He also said that the vaccination program in the green zones will use the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.
Indonesia has thus far depended solely on CoronaVac, developed by Chinese pharmaceutical firm Sinovac, in its mass vaccination program that began in mid-January.
Tens of thousands of people residing and conducting activities in Ubud, Sanur, and Nusa Dua are going to be vaccinated as part of the “Free COVID Corridor” program, which officials say is the first step towards reopening Bali to foreign tourists.