The House member made this statement in response to the low literacy rate in Indonesia, as reported in a survey conducted by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
"We must accept that, based on the OECD survey in 2022, we were ranked 60th out of 61 countries. Then, in 2023, we rose slightly to 70th out of 74 countries," he noted in a statement received on Monday.
Although the OECD survey only assessed respondents aged 15, he said the data can still be used to evaluate the literacy conditions in Indonesia.
He also noted that some regions, such as Central Java, have relatively low literacy, numeracy, and science levels, as reported by Statistics Indonesia (BPS).
According to Faqih, as part of the synergy, the community can establish a community library that will be fostered by the National Library.
Faqih assessed that literacy programs will be effective if the government synergizes comprehensively and involves the community.
"In fact, it is the community that has been largely driving the efforts (to improve literacy). If the government does not care and does not engage with them, then government programs will become irrelevant," he remarked.
Hence, he encourages better coordination between ministries to achieve significant progress in improving literacy.
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Translator: Tri Meilani, Raka Adji
Editor: Aditya Eko Sigit Wicaksono
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