Culture Minister urges museums to digitise collections to attract young generation

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Culture Minister Fadli Zon has urged museums to digitise their collections and prepare compelling narratives to attract young people, particularly Generation Z, to gain a deeper appreciation of culture. “Strengthening storytelling and incorporating digital elements are crucial to bring museums closer to the younger generation, especially Gen Z,” said Fadli Zon during his visit to the Radya Pustaka Museum in Surakarta, Central Java, in a press release received in Jakarta on Friday. The Radya Pustaka Museum is one of the oldest museums in Indonesia and houses a diverse collection of important items, ranging from ancient manuscripts and Javanese cultural artefacts to historical objects such as wayang puppets, keris daggers, and gamelan instruments. The museum is renowned as a key repository of Javanese cultural heritage, featuring a wide array of collections including ancient Javanese-language manuscripts, wayang kulit puppets, Hindu-Buddhist era statues, and various cultural items that reflect the development of civilisation in Java. The museum’s existence plays a vital role in preserving history, and to continue captivating generation after generation, it requires refreshment in the presentation of its collections. “The collections at the Radya Pustaka Museum are highly significant, from artefacts to high-value manuscripts. Their arrangement and presentation need to be strengthened to make them more appealing,” stated Fadli Zon. The Culture Minister stressed that museums should not only serve as spaces for storing the past but also as learning platforms to understand the present and build the future. Fadli encouraged museums to be continually developed as showcases of the nation’s culture and civilisation, while also serving as spaces that cultivate awareness among the younger generation of Indonesia’s identity and history.