MPR Leader: Utilise Ancient Manuscripts for Improving Literacy

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Deputy Chairman of the MPR RI Lestari Moerdijat encourages the National Library (Perpusnas) not only to store ancient manuscripts but also to utilise them maximally to enhance national literacy.

“The potential possessed by Perpusnas must be able to help encourage the public’s reading interest. Manuscripts that have been digitised should not just be stored. Maximal utilisation must be realised immediately,” said Lestari in her statement in Jakarta on Tuesday.

Perpusnas internal data as of 2026 records that the total collection of national manuscripts reaches 143,259 copies, both inside and outside the country. However, those stored at Perpusnas number only 13,318 manuscripts. Of that number, only 7,987 have been digitised.

Due to budget efficiency, the target for manuscript salvage has dropped drastically from 10,300 to just 2,165 manuscripts.

According to Rerie, Lestari’s familiar nickname, ancient manuscripts are evidence of the nation’s intellectual tradition. If they are not prioritised as learning materials, then preservation efforts lose their meaning.

Rerie assesses that Nusantara manuscripts contain local wisdom that is relevant for future development, so Perpusnas’s efforts to save manuscripts alone are not enough.

She emphasised that Perpusnas’s role in promoting increased public literacy must also be carried out consistently.

Lestari opined that facilitating public access to Nusantara manuscripts is part of efforts to improve public literacy.

“Caring for manuscripts means caring for the nation’s intellect. Do not let these ancient manuscript salvage efforts become mere administrative steps,” stated Rerie.