Science center planned for East Jakarta

JAKARTA (JP): The project to build a science center at the Indonesia in Miniature Park in East Jakarta should help motivate people, particularly youths, to work hard to master high technology, an official of the recreation complex says.

Under the science center project the complex will be equipped with sophisticated educational and scientific facilities.

"The project is scheduled to commence by the end of this year," Dandul Hardoyono, the head of the park's public relations office, told Antara on Thursday.

He expressed hope that the center would encourage people, particularly young people interested in educational and scientific matters, to visit the park regularly.

"This will certainly help improve their knowledge, views and perspectives, as well broaden their horizons," Dandul noted.

He said the establishment of the facility augurs wells for boosting ticket sales, as well for exhorting the younger generation to work hard to master high technology in the era of globalization.

He said that there seems to be an encouraging new trend among Indonesian youths visiting the park. "In the past most of them visited the park simply for pleasure and recreation. But now, it seems, many of them have begun to pay more attention to things related to education, culture and the sciences, by more frequently visiting several museums available," Dandul said.

He said that, while enjoying the amusement facilities, young people visiting the complex also have the opportunity to increase their knowledge in a way which could be later be of use to them in their careers.

The park currently houses a number of museums, including Museum Komodo, the Philatelic Museum, the Transportation Museum, the Asmat Museum, the Military Museum, the Natural Gas and Oil Museum, the Sports Museum and the Telecommunications and Information Museum.

Dandul said data shows that the park is visited by between 5,000 and 6,000 people per day on ordinary working days. "About 30,000 people visit the park on holidays. The number of visitors can reach more than 100,000 per day during the Islamic holidays of Lebaran and Idul Fitri."(BAS)