The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)  Indonesia through the Breakthrough ACTION for COVID-19 project supported the Ministry of Health of Indonesia in commemorating National Elderly Day (HLUN) both at the national and sub-national level. The HLUN is a time for all related institutions, sectors and organization to join forces to promote the elderly wellness. The theme of this year National Elderly Day celebration was, “a Healthy Elderly for a Strong Indonesia”.  

The National Elderly Day commemoration Kicked-off in Jakarta on June 3rd, 2022. Attended by the Minister of Health Budi Gunadi Sadikin along with relevant stakeholders and representatives of related institutions, organizations, CSO’s and private entities. This activity was hybrid with more than 150 elderly participating through offline activities and joined by representatives from 34 provinces through an online platform. The HLUN activities also provided health screening and vaccination posts where Breakthrough ACTION Community Engagement Kits were used as an educational tool for counseling the elderly on the importance of the vaccine. 

The district level celebrations happened earlier. The first HLUN celebration was conducted in Bantaeng, South Sulawesi on May 29, 2022. This event was a collaboration between the Bantaeng district health agency, the Elderly Association of Sayang Bunda and Breakthrough ACTION.  More than 195 elderly received vaccine education using the Community Engagement kits, and more than 40 people were vaccinated during the event. Quizzes and games were rolled out at the event, spreading messages on the importance of COVID-19 vaccination for elderly. Pahlawan Lansia (Elderly Hero) of Bantaeng, Bapak Saeruddin, was talking vigorously on combating the barriers in vaccination and encouraging his fellow elderly not to hesitate to get vaccinated. 

In Kayong Utara district West Kalimantan, the HLUN commemoration was held on May 31st 2022. In this event, more than 150 people received education for COVID-19 vaccination and 30 people were vaccinated on the spot. The local government conveyed appreciation to Breakthrough ACTION and committed to continue carrying out the vaccination messages using the CE Kits. The Pahlawan Lansia from Kayong Utara Bapak Abdul Rani disseminated important messages to the fellow elderly not to believe in hoaxes and seek information from the official health workers. Pak Abdul Rani stated that spreading information on the safety of the COVID-19 vaccination is important to motivate others to get vaccinated.

In Kupang District, the HLUN celebration was held at the courtyard of the Ebenhaezer Tarus Barat Church, Central Kupang District, on 2nd June 2022 and attended by more than 150 elderly people from 8 villages in the Tarus Health Center area. The event was held in collaboration with the Kupang district health office, Tarus Health Center, Tarus Ebenheizer Church and Breakthrough ACTION. All participants received education from posyandu cadres and village health workers. The Pahlawan Lansia winner Bapak Soleman Dethan shared an inspirational experience regarding COVID-19 vaccination. Bapak Soleman had to go through 9 screenings until he was declared eligible to receive the vaccine. Based on his experience, he urged his fellow elderly not to hesitate to get vaccinated, because it’s important to protect themselves and their families and the vaccination is safe. 

There were 93 elderly were vaccinated on the spot, and according to one participant from the village of Mata Air, Oktaviana Lobo, aged 66, that “this activity opens the minds of the elderly to care more about protecting themselves and their families from the risk of being exposed to COVID 19. As elderly, we must be more alert, stay active and do routine activities, Such as health checks, and especially vaccinations.”

The COVID-19 vaccination has become one of the strategic efforts to protect the elderly in the pandemic era and has been promoted by Breakthrough ACTION through the multi-media phased national campaign SIAP and community events in five provinces. Breakthrough ACTION has built COVID-19 vaccination capacity in 10 districts in Indonesia, and continues to work collaboratively with all related stakeholders to increase the uptake of COVID-19 vaccination.