Douglas Ramage invited a friend over to his Jakarta apartment last weeked for a socially distanced drink. It was the first time Ramage had entertained in nine months. Both men are fully vaccinated. A day later came the call. The friend wasn’t feeling well, and a COVID-19 test had come back positive.

“I am the most conservative person I know,” says Ramage, managing director of business advisory company BowerGroupAsia. “I’ve been hypervigilant and yet here I am, waiting the recommended few days before I get a PCR test. Basically the virus is rampant here.”