Locally manufactured COVID-19 screening tool GeNose has been installed at 21 airports in Indonesia, according to Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi.
"GeNose has been used at 21 airports. We will apply this in at least 100 airports across the country, including in eastern Indonesia. I have urged the Director-General of Air Transportation to coordinate with UGM to discuss the issue," Sumadi noted in a statement here on Saturday.
The 21 airports are Yogyakarta (YIA), Palembang (PLM), Bandung (BDO), Surabaya (SUB), Bali (DPS), Batam (BTH), Samarinda (AAP), Pangkal Pinang (PGK), Tanjung Pandan (TJQ), Jambi (DJB), Makassar (UPG), Gorontalo (GTO), Palu (PLW), Pontianak (PNK), Lampung (TKG), Tanjung Pinang (TNJ), Balikpapan (BPN), Tarakan (TRK), Sentani (DJJ), Tambolaka (TMC), and Banjarmasin (BDJ).
The minister noted that GeNose tool had also been installed at 44 railway stations, with over 500 thousand people tested using the tool. Some 100 thousand people were tested using GeNose at airports.
"We have to be proud of local products. GeNose has three advantages. It is fast, pain-free, and cheap," he remarked.
The government necessitates travelers to obtain a document on the result of the COVID-19 screening test using GeNose or antigen rapid test that showed a non-reactive result or the result of the PCR test that showed a negative result.
GeNose, a device made by Gadjah Mada University (UGM) that can detect the coronavirus disease in just two minutes, is currently being deployed on trains and buses. The devise is licensed by the COVID-19 handling task force, and passengers are required to be screened before getting on board.
Research and Technology Minister, concurrently Research and Innovation Agency Head Bambang Brodjonegoro remarked that the flexibility of GeNose C19 allows it to be used at airports, stations, terminals, hospitals, offices, and other public places, such as tourist attractions and shopping center.
Genose 19, which the UGM research team began developing in March 2020, is demonstrated to have a sensitivity rate of up to 90 percent and a specificity rate of 96 percent.
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