Safety and Proven Risk Assessment on the Release of Wolbachia-Inserted Aedes Aegypti: Lesson Learned from the Partial Resistance of the Community

Abstract

Aims: to describe the basis of partial rejection from the community regarding the government's plan to expand the range of releases of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes which have been inserted with the endosymbiont bacteria Wolbachia spp. to reduce the incidence of dengue hemorrhagic fever and offers a more rational approach based on community based medicine to educate massively first before expecting community participation. Discussion: Aedes aegypti which laboratorily inserted with Wolbachia, an endosymbiont bacterium, naturally occurring in insects is actually a great success story in several countries, e.g., Brazil. In Jogjakarta, Indonesia this success story also repeated even though unfortunately when the government tries to expand the programme, some part of the community reject it. Lack of sufficient community education perhaps become the main reason of rejection from those who do not understand yet regarding the benefit. Conclusion: Tackling social determinants of Health is necessary in order to make a national programme can be implemented and receive support from the community.