"The award is given to people and institutions that dedicate efforts to the development and utilization of libraries and to foster a culture of reading and literacy in Indonesia," head of the National Library, Muhammad Syarif Bando, said in a written statement received here on Tuesday.
During the event, awards were presented to public officials, community leaders, literacy activists, mass media, journalists, and preservers of ancient manuscripts, as well as the best books. A lifetime achievement award was also bestowed at the event.
The Nugra Jasa Dharma Pustaloka award is not merely ceremonial; it is mandated by the law as a means to educate everyone, Bando informed.
"We continue to strive to move forward to advance this nation, lay the foundation of intelligence by presenting as much new information as possible," he said.
The national rate of reading is high, he emphasized. However, the lack of reading materials still poses a problem. Based on UNESCO standards, ideally, each person must read three new books per year.
"In fact, 90 people are waiting for one book in Indonesia. We all have to understand very well that people still lack reading materials, not to mention literacy skills that are still uneven," he informed.
Literacy relates to the depth of one's knowledge that can be put to use to produce goods and services, which can compete in the global market, he explained.
"This is where the role of the library as a supporter is to prepare reading materials, at least applied books or life skills that are tailored to the needs of the public," he said.
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In particular, the lifetime achievement award presented to the East Java Governor is proof of the people's collective hard work in pursuing literacy and building a reading culture in Indonesia, especially in East Java. Their efforts to promote literacy and reading have included providing mobile reading stations and child-friendly tents as a form of trauma healing at refugee camps.
Parawansa said that currently, her administration is working on preserving the manuscripts of classic ancient books, or turos.
“Because they are old, some of the turos are a bit difficult to open. You need jelly from Japan so that the sticking papers can be opened and read," she informed.
Her administration is also planning to exchange the turos with the Alexandria Library in Egypt, as well as hold turos exhibitions in Egypt and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, she said.
Meanwhile, Agriculture Minister Syahrul Yasin Limpo, who received the award in the category for public officials, said that the award will motivate his administration to consistently increase efforts to preserve the reading culture and increase literacy, particularly in relation to agricultural information.
“What we do does not cease with this award. We are ready to work with the National Library with inclusive measures to build society, especially farmers in Indonesia," he added.
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Translator: Indriani, Mecca Yumna
Editor: Suharto
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