Students, civil servants to study and work from home as Jakarta hosts Asean Summit

JAKARTA - Students in some parts of the Indonesian capital

will do their schooling from home, and more civil servants will also work remotely

for a few days as Jakarta hosts the 43rd Asean Summit and other related meetings from Sept 2 to 7.

From Sept 4 to 7, more than 700 schools in South and Central Jakarta will have to implement distance learning, said Jakarta’s acting governor Heru Budi Hartono last Wednesday.

Mr Heru Budi told reporters at Jakarta’s City Hall that the move aims to reduce traffic congestion during the summit.

Traffic on several roads in the vicinity of the Jakarta Convention Centre, the summit’s venue, will be diverted or blocked to allow for the smooth movement of Asean leaders and delegates.

The acting governor on Saturday also announced that 75 per cent of the city’s civil servants will have to work from home for the duration of the summit.

At the moment, half of Jakarta’s civil servants work from home, a policy implemented earlier in August to help

combat worsening pollution in the city.

Those working in certain public services, such as hospitals, will be exempted from the policy.

Mr Heru Budi has appealed to the private sector to follow the government’s example and implement similar work-from-home policies where possible.

Over the past few weeks, members of Indonesia’s Presidential Secretariat have met several business associations to discuss this.

The city has been busy preparing for the summit, with banners erected on billboards, as well as at the side of roads and public transport nodes.

At the iconic Selamat Datang (Welcome) monument in the city centre, a large structure bearing the words “Asean Indonesia 2023” has been put up. The words are lit up at night and can be seen from the many malls, hotels and office buildings in the vicinity.

Mr Setya Utama, Secretary of the Ministry of State Secretariat, said last Friday that all preparations, including logistical arrangements and putting up of decorations, will be completed by Sept 3.

There will also be a gala dinner for Asean leaders at Gelora Bung Karno City Forest, an urban green space near the city centre.

It is understood that meetings will also be held at The St Regis Jakarta hotel and Asean Secretariat office.

The Ministry of Transportation has made arrangements at two of Jakarta’s airports, Soekarno-Hatta and Halim Perdanakusuma international airports, to welcome arriving state guests and ensure smooth traffic flow.

The Asean Summit, the bloc’s 43rd, will be the second of two high-level meetings hosted by Indonesia as Asean chair in 2023.

Leaders of the group are expected to review Asean’s progress and discuss ways to further enhance collaboration in member states’ digital and green economies.

Asean leaders will also be meeting their counterparts from partner countries, including the United States, China, Japan, India and South Korea.