Independent foundations for museums to be set up

JAKARTA (JP): In an effort to have financially independent city-owned museums, the city administration will establish foundations to improve their performance and services, officials said on Friday.

Consultant for the foundation establishment project Mary Jane Edleson and head of the Jakarta Historical Museum Tinia Budiati said separately that the museums had problems financing their activities and improving their services.

"The foundations will unite all elements in the city community who are concerned about the museums and their collections, and will mainly financially support the museums.

"We've learned from other countries, where institutions like museums are always supported by such foundations," Edleson said.

"The museums here are financially dependent on the city budget," she added.

The city budget, however, is small compared to the museums' operational expenses, which, according to several museum heads, is about Rp 2 million (US$266) per month.

Edleson said that such a foundation was established for the 240-year-old National Archives Building on Jl. Gajah Mada in West Jakarta.

"It is such a good example that funds for the building and its activities have started to pour in," she said.

She said she expected that the museum foundations could be established this year, with the Jakarta Historical Museum in West Jakarta as the pilot project.

"Preparations have been made, like inviting heads of the city museums to a series of meetings to get input from experts.

"The next step is that they (museum heads) should present their visions for the future during the Festival of the Old City of Kota in August," she said.

The city is home to 60 museums, seven of which belong to the city administration. Four are located in the Kota area in West Jakarta, namely the Jakarta Historical Museum, the Puppet Museum, the Fine Arts and Ceramics Museum and the Maritime Museum.

Another three are located in Central Jakarta: the Memorial Stone Park Museum, the Textile Museum and the 1945 Fight for Freedom Museum.

Meanwhile, Tinia said the museums would still belong to the city although each of them would have its own foundation.

"Policy making will still be in the hands of the city administration. The foundations will pay more attention to supporting the museums' activities to make them more attractive," she said.

Tinia said the museums had been having problems improving their performance due to their limited budget.

"We cannot have, for instance, qualified exhibitions if the budget is limited," she said. (ind)