Strong Collaboration from All Parties Key to Keeping Libraries Relevant to the Public
Strong collaboration must be built with all parties to ensure that libraries and public educational spaces remain relevant in the face of changing times.
“Experience in various regions shows that revitalisation involving communities, local governments, and stakeholders is capable of accelerating the transformation of reading spaces into popular destinations,” said the Deputy Speaker of the MPR RI, Lestari Moerdijat, on Monday (14/9), in commemoration of Library Visit Day, observed every 14 September.
Library Visit Day was first established on 14 September 1995 by President Soeharto with the aim of enhancing reading culture and literacy in Indonesia.
Sharing her experiences, Rerie—as she is affectionately known—noted that the relatively rapid conversion of the Jepara Regent’s official residence into part of the Kartini Museum was a result of strong collaboration between all relevant parties.
As a member of Commission X of the DPR RI, Rerie expressed hope that such collaboration could be applied consistently in the development of the national cultural sector, including libraries and museums, which face similar challenges in attracting public visits.
National Library data for 2025 records that the number of libraries in Indonesia has reached 219,415 units. This figure consists of 155,904 libraries in primary to upper secondary schools, 54,344 public libraries (at provincial, regency/city, district, and village levels), 5,833 special libraries (within government, non-government, and religious institutions), and 3,335 libraries within higher education environments.
According to the same source, the legislator from Central Java’s Constituency II added that the number of accredited libraries stands at 14,774 (6.73%), while unaccredited libraries reach 204,641 (93.27%).
The member of the NasDem Party’s High Chamber emphasised that these challenges must be addressed through strengthening various sectors and cannot be achieved in isolation. According to Rerie, cross-sector commitment is required to ensure these spaces of knowledge remain alive and accessible to the wider public.
“Strong collaboration from all relevant parties is urgently needed to realise this as part of the effort to bring public welfare through the broad improvement of literacy,” concluded Rerie.
Furthermore, the Deputy Speaker of the MPR RI emphasised the importance of adaptive education systems and infrastructure to face Indonesia’s high seismic activity. She also encouraged the acceleration of the digitalisation of 143,259 Nusantara manuscripts to improve the Public Literacy Development Index.