Librarians must play a role in improving the competencies needed by society today, such as critical thinking, creativity, communication, and cooperation in solving problems.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Librarians must help improve the necessary competencies in society, chairperson of the Indonesian Librarians Association (IPI) for the 2018–2021 period, T. Syamsul Bahri, said here on Wednesday.

"Librarians must play a role in improving the competencies needed by society today, such as critical thinking, creativity, communication, and cooperation in solving problems," he expounded.

IPI is holding the 15th Congress and National Scientific Seminar in Surabaya, East Java, from November 1–4, 2022. The seminar is themed "The Role of Librarians in the National Digital Ecosystem.”

IPI is a non-profit organization that was founded on July 6, 1973, as a forum for librarians with the aim of improving professionalism, library science, and information.

According to Bahri, librarians need to have skills that are useful in the current era of disruption, such as the ability to combine digital and printed collections, access information in various formats, and communicate with others through media that has rapidly developed.

East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa said that the duties of librarians are not simple.

"Indonesia's declining civility in the digital world is dominated by the adult age group based on the 2022 Digital Civility Index report by Microsoft. (Hence,) the duties of librarians are not only to make them love to read, but also to educate them to have polite digital interactions," Parawansa explained.

According to the head of the National Library, Muhammad Syarif Bando, libraries must prepare to enter the digital realm.

"Like it or not, libraries have to transform from manual to digital because it is the digital era," he said.

Librarians from across Indonesia who are attending the congress are expected to conduct studies to follow in the footsteps of East Java's success in public library development.

The National Library has also held the National Library Award and National Peer Learning Meeting as part of the Social Inclusion-Based Library Transformation program.

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Translator: Indriani, Kenzu
Editor: Sri Haryati
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