Jakartans' life expectancy rises to 69.6 years
Jakartans' life expectancy rises to 69.6 years
JAKARTA (JP): The life expectancy for residents of Jakarta has
reached 69.6 years, the longest in the whole of Indonesia, but
the number of cases of cancer and mental illness is rising,
Governor Surjadi Soedirdja said yesterday.
At the national level, life expectancy figures vary between 63
and 65 years.
Surjadi said that the development of health infrastructure and
programs also has succeeded in bringing down the infant mortality
rate, which currently stands at 33 per 1,000 live births.
But the changing lifestyles and the high level of pollution,
particularly in urban areas like Jakarta, has caused non-
infectious diseases to become as common as infectious diseases.
The frequency of non-infectious diseases like hypertension,
strokes, cancer and mental disorders is on the rise.
"We should be very wary of these diseases, especially cancer,"
the governor said while dedicating a cancer hospital and
laboratory in Sunter, North Jakarta. Also on hand for the
ceremony was the chairperson of the Indonesian Cancer Foundation
Karlina Umar Wirahadikusumah.
Surjadi noted that currently 100 out of every 100,000 people
in Jakarta have cancer. This means that an estimated 9,000 of
Jakarta's nine million people have the killer disease, he added.
He warned city residents to have their health checked
regularly in order to detect cancer at early stages.
"The earlier stadium of the cancer, the more possibility of a
cure," he said.
The governor also called on the private sector to play a
bigger role in the prevention of cancer because the government's
funding for the health sector is small.
Facilities
The hospital facilities dedicated yesterday were built and are
managed by the Jakarta chapter of the Indonesian Cancer
Foundation.
The new cancer hospital and laboratory were built on a 2,983-
hectare plot of land.
Chairperson of the Jakarta branch of the cancer foundation,
Sri Sumarsih, said that the facilities are meant to help people
of the low income bracket obtain medical treatment.
The hospital, which also provides information on cancer to the
public, boasts modern technology for diagnosing and treating
internal diseases.
Official figures indicate that Jakarta's economy has grown by
8.3 percent in the past year, more than the expected 7.5 percent.
In the same period, the residents' per capita income has risen 14
percent to reach Rp 4 million (US$1,750). (32/pan)