Two professors from Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) received the Excellent Award from the Indonesian Ministry of Health on Aug. 13 in Jakarta.
Professor Adi Utarini from UGM’s Faculty of Medicine, Public Health, and Nursing (FK-KMK UGM) and Professor Abdul Rohman from the Faculty of Pharmacy (Pharmacy UGM) received this prestigious award, which recognizes their significant contributions to the field of health.
In an interview with reporters on Thursday (Aug. 22), Professor Utarini expressed her surprise at receiving the award from the Ministry of Health. She viewed the recognition as an appreciation of her contributions to the healthcare sector.
“I am grateful and proud because this award was given by an institution that benefits from our research. It seems they added a new category for the Excellent Award and Outstanding Cadres this year,” said Professor Adi Utarini.
During the award ceremony, Professor Adi Utarini was one of 11 recipients of the Excellent Award. Her innovative research on Wolbachia for dengue fever prevention was a key factor in her selection.
Wolbachia works by turning off the dengue virus in Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, preventing the virus from being transmitted to humans. If a Wolbachia-infected male Aedes aegypti mates with a female, the dengue virus in the female will be blocked.
The effectiveness of Wolbachia has been researched since 2011 by the World Mosquito Program (WMP) in Yogyakarta, with support from the Tahija Foundation. The research included preparation and limited-scale release of Wolbachia-infected Aedes aegypti mosquitoes until 2015.
This Wolbachia technology has become part of Indonesia’s National Strategy for Dengue Control 2021-2025, based on the Minister of Health Decree No. 1341 concerning implementing the Wolbachia Pilot Project. In addition to Yogyakarta, the Ministry of Health has implemented the Wolbachia program in Semarang, Bandung, Bontang, Kupang, and West Jakarta.
Mosquito releases have been conducted in four cities, except for West Jakarta, where the program is still in the community outreach phase. These areas were selected for initial implementation based on population density, dengue burden, and local government commitment to dengue control programs.
“Policy-wise, there are no issues. Now, it’s more about management and operational logistics needed for implementation. It may start in priority areas first,” explained Professor Utarini regarding the progress of the Wolbachia program.
In a separate interview, Professor Abdul Rohman stated that the award appreciated his research on halal products.
His interest in halal product research stemmed from the limited number of halal research products despite the increasing demand for halal products in food, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics as awareness among the global Muslim community grows.
In addition to his contributions to halal product research, Professor Rohman is a highly accomplished professor with numerous achievements. One of his notable accomplishments is being ranked among the top 2% of World Ranking Scientists in 2021.
The Ministry of Health awarded the National Health Worker, Outstanding Health Worker, and Outstanding Cadre Awards for 2024. These awards were presented by the Minister of Health, Budi Gunadi Sadikin.
Two hundred thirty awards were given to medical and health workers from government and private health facilities and Posyandu cadres across Indonesia.
“Congratulations to the outstanding health workers, medical personnel, and cadres for their remarkable achievements,” said Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin.
Authors: Rahma Khoirunnisa and Hanif
Editor: Gusti Grehenson