Ministry of Religious Affairs deploys counsellors to educate families on child-rearing in the digital age
Jakarta — Indonesia’s Ministry of Religious Affairs will mobilise its network of counsellors to educate families regarding child-rearing in the digital era whilst promoting the importance of delaying children’s access to social media.
“We will immediately prepare an action plan to effectively protect children in digital spaces,” said Religious Affairs Minister Nasaruddin Umar in a statement in Jakarta on Thursday.
He stated that this mobilisation represents support for Government Regulation No. 17 of 2025 concerning Digital Governance for Child Protection Systems (PP TUNAS) and Communications and Information Technology Ministry Regulation No. 9 of 2026, which restricts social media access for children under 16 years of age.
According to him, support for PP TUNAS implementation is realised through strengthening moral values and digital ethics across all religious educational institutions to ensure sustained child protection in cyberspace.
The Ministry will target major educational ecosystems under its oversight, with primary protection covering 10.4 million madrasah students, 3.3 million pesantren students, and tens of thousands of students from religious schools of various faiths.
“The Ministry is committed to fully supporting the spirit of PP TUNAS to safeguard the future of Indonesia’s golden generation. We are not merely focused on technical aspects, but on strengthening the ‘fortress’ of moral and digital ethics for students in religious educational settings,” he said.
He noted that the Ministry’s support for strengthening digital literacy has actually been underway since 2025. The Ministry has conducted digital literacy training for 269,495 participants, comprising teachers, religious counsellors, and religious scholars.
This training is designed to equip educators to guide children in distinguishing beneficial content from harmful content.
The Ministry has also innovated by integrating digital ethics curriculum into religious education subjects. The use of artificial intelligence technology has been introduced through the “Santri Proficient in AI” programme and the creation of child-friendly educational content.
This step aims to ensure that children are not only “ready” by age, but also possess intellectual skills when they begin engaging with social media.
“The independence and sustainability of this protection require synergy. The Ministry has established collaboration with the Communications and Information Technology Ministry through a Memorandum of Understanding to ensure that religious movements that are friendly and courteous are also reflected in digital spaces,” said the Minister.
Additionally, the Ministry is strengthening the implementation of child-friendly madrasah and pesantren programmes that promote healthy educational environments and limit the use of digital technology that is inappropriate for children’s ages.