Lestari Moerdijat Urges Massive Promotion of SIBI to Boost Public Literacy

The availability of access to reading materials must be accompanied by massive steps to ensure such access can be utilised as widely as possible, as part of efforts to improve public literacy.

“The maximum utilisation of existing literacy resources must be realised immediately and must be able to help drive public reading interest,” said the Deputy Speaker of the MPR RI, Lestari Moerdijat, in a written statement on Saturday (4/7).

On Wednesday (1/7), the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education (Kemendikdasmen) inaugurated the integration of the Indonesian Book Information System (SIBI) with the Senayan Library Management System (SLiMS).

Secretary-General of Kemendikdasmen, Suharti, stated that this integration allows the public to access high-quality books without being hindered by distance or physical access to libraries.

Data from Kemendikdasmen notes that as of 30 June 2026, more than 8.8 million people have visited the SIBI website, with total digital books read exceeding 13.7 million times and downloads surpassing 2.6 million.

Currently, 1,842 book titles are available, ranging from illustrated storybooks for children to textbooks for primary, lower secondary, and upper secondary schools.

According to Lestari, massive and even socialisation must be carried out immediately so that the available reading material facilities can be accessed as widely as possible by the public.

In particular, Rerie—as she is affectionately known—noted that this is vital for communities in underdeveloped, frontier, and outermost regions who face difficulties accessing reading materials.

Education on how to access the platform https://buku.kemendikdasmen.go.id/ to obtain reading materials must also be widely communicated, she added.

Furthermore, Rerie, who is also a member of Commission X of the DPR RI, explained that the development of digital library functions as centres for literacy and innovation that attract all groups must be carried out consistently.

Equally important, Rerie emphasised the need to ensure the availability of supporting infrastructure, such as adequate internet access throughout all regions of Indonesia.

The NasDem Party member expressed hope that the government’s efforts would serve as a breakthrough in equalising educational access and improving literacy in Indonesia.

“Support from various parties, including collaboration between the government, the private sector, and the community, is crucial to realising a future generation of the nation that is intelligent and competitive,” Rerie concluded.