Gojek riders wait for their delivery orders at a distribution centre in Surabaya on May 17, 2021, as Gojek and Tokopedia unveiled a merger to form GoTo Group, creating the largest tech firm in the world's fourth most populous country. - AFP
JAKARTA, May 17 (Xinhua): The Covid-19 cases in Indonesia rose by 4,295 within one day to 1,744,045, with the death toll adding by 212 to 48,305, the health ministry said on Monday.
According to the ministry, 5,754 more people were discharged from hospitals, bringing the total number of recovered patients to 1,606,611.
The virus has spread to all the country's 34 provinces.
Specifically, within the past 24 hours, West Java recorded 1,361 new cases, Central Java 673, Jakarta 421, Riau 317 and East Java 202.
No new positive cases were found in North Maluku and Papua.
Meanwhile, Indonesia's giant ride-hailing company Gojek and e-commerce marketplace Tokopedia announced on Monday their decision to officially merge to create a big technology group in Southeast Asia's largest economy.
Named GoTo, the group could be worth about US$18 billion.
Combining e-commerce, on-demand and financial services, GoTo is the first platform in South-East Asia to host these three essential use cases in one ecosystem.
"Today is a truly historic day as we mark the beginning of GoTo and the next phase of growth for Gojek, Tokopedia and GoTo Financial. Gojek drivers will deliver even more Tokopedia packages and serve as merchant partners of all sizes to benefit from strengthened business solutions, and we will use our combined scale to increase financial inclusion in an emerging region with untapped growth potential," Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GoTo Group Andre Soelistyo said in a statement issued on Monday.
"For the consumer, GoTo Group will continue to reduce frictions and provide the best in class delivery of goods and services. This is the next step of an exciting journey and I am humbled and proud to lead the GoTo movement," he added.
Meanwhile, President of GoTo Group Patrick Cao said, "GoTo Group will account for more than 2 percent of the GDP in Indonesia and we're going to create a lot more employment and income earning opportunities as our company and the economy expand. We are excited for the next chapter and look forward to our shared pursuit of innovation as a catalyst for inclusive growth."
According to the media release, in 2020, the group had a Gross Transaction Value (GTV) of more than 22 billion U.S dollars and more than 1.8 billion transactions.
As of December 2020, more than 2 million driver partners and more than 11 million business partners or merchants have been registered in the group.
GoTo has more than 100 million monthly active users and has created an ecosystem that contributes about two percent of the total Indonesian economy, according to the company's statement. - Xinhua
