VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The XV Congress and National Scientific Seminar in Surabaya, East Java - 

The Indonesian Librarian Association (IPI) held the XV Congress and National Scientific Seminar in Surabaya, East Java.

The activity, which was held on November 1-4, 2022, raised the theme "The Role of Librarians in the National Digital Ecosystem" and was attended by 600 participants from all over Indonesia.

Librarians will face challenges in the future, considering that the era of disruption requires librarians to become mentors, facilitators, motivators, and inspire them to develop the creative imagination needed by the community through information.

"Librarians must play a role in improving the competencies needed by today's society such as critical thinking, creative, communicative and building cooperation in solving problems," explained the Chairperson of the 2018-2021 IPI Central Executive, T. Syamsul Bahri in his remarks at the opening of the event.

According to Syamsul Bahri, global competencies in the era of disruption needed by librarians are the ability to combine digital and printed collections, the ability to access information in various formats, the ability to communicate with others through media that has developed rapidly.

Regarding the theme, the Governor of East Java, Khofifah Indar Parawansa, said that the task of the librarian is not simple.

"The decline in politeness in Indonesia in the digital world is dominated by the adult age group based on the Digital Civility Index report from Microsoft in 2022. The task of librarians is not only to make them love reading, but also to educate them to conduct digital interactions politely," said Khofifah.

Head of the National Library of the Republic of Indonesia (Perpusnas), Muhammad Syarif Bando, stated that nowadays, libraries must change to digital. “Like it or not, like it or not, libraries must transform from manual to digital. Because this is the digital era," he explained.

After the opening ceremony, the Head of National Library expressed his appreciation for the success of East Java province in the field of libraries.

“In recent years, the province of East Java has always been the champion in the development of public libraries. In addition to attending scientific congresses and seminars, librarians from various regions in Indonesia who attend are expected to be able to conduct studies to imitate the success of East Java province in the development of public libraries," he explained.

Furthermore, it was stated that this month, National Library of Indonesia held the National Library Gemilang and National Peer Learning Meeting as part of the Social Inclusion-Based Library Transformation program.

According to a release received by Voice of Indonesia on Wednesday, the XV IPI Congress was arranged in the form of a scientific seminar with speakers from the Ministry of Administrative Reform and Bureaucratic Reform, Ministry of Home Affairs, Head of the National Library of Data and Information Center, Taufiq A. Gani, Indonesian Reading Ambassador, Gol A Gong, East Java Reading Ambassador, Heralda Syafira, motivator for Paso Deka Dewanto, and Universitas Airlangga Rahma Sugihartati.

As well as holding an accountability report for the IPI Central Executive for the 2018-2021 period, selecting new management for the IPI Central Board for the 2022-2025 period, compiling a work program, reviewing AD/ART and code of ethics, and making a working visit to the East Java provincial library.

IPI is a non-profit organization that was founded on July 6, 1973 as a forum for librarians with the aim of increasing the professionalism of Indonesian librarians, developing library and information science, devoting and practicing the power and expertise of librarians for the nation and state as well as promoting and providing protection to members//VOI

Head of the Indonesian National Library, Mohamad Syarif Bando - 

The 28th International Conference of Heads of National Libraries in Asia and Oceania was officially opened in Jakarta, Tuesday (25/10/22). Met after the Gala dinner at the National Library building, the Head of the Indonesian National Library, Mohamad Syarif Bando explained that Indonesia was one of the pioneers in creating digital book applications.

"In our discussion earlier, we discussed the paradigm and momentum of the old library to the new library paradigm, where the library reaches the public with the application of increasingly sophisticated information technology. So now the era is no longer people who visit libraries but libraries that visit people with technological facilities such as in Indonesia to be one of the pioneers in creating an application called I-pusnas where all books purchased from 800 legal publishers can be read in full text via mobile phones", Syarif Bando said. 

Syarif Bando added that with the theme Library Service Impacts on Community: Sustainability, Inclusion, and Innovation, libraries can be fully involved in supporting Sustainable Development or SDG's to end poverty, improve welfare, and protect the planet, through the achievement of 17 goals//VOI

Chair of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions - IFLA ASEAN, Lin Li Soh - 

The holding of the 28th Asean - Oceania International Librarian Conference which took place from 24 to 28 October 2022 in Jakarta has won praise from the Chair of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions - IFLA ASEAN, Lin Li Soh when met on the sidelines of the Gala Dinner, on Tuesday ( 25/10/22).

"This conference was very well organized and professional and we have to thank the National Library of Indonesia for this", Lin said. 

Lin added that the conference, which was attended by librarian heads from 36 IFLA member countries, was a forum for libraries around the world to exchange information and work together to raise the literacy spirit of the community as well as improve skills with easier access.

"IFLA is an international voice from libraries around the world that raises community skills by providing easy access to information because access is the key for people to make the right decisions for themselves", Lin reveal. 

Furthermore, Lin explained that libraries play a role in supporting the SDG's Sustainability Program. For this reason, the library must be able to provide access to information to the public, so that the community can develop sustainably, both socially and environmentally//VOI

The 28th General Conference of Directors of National Libraries in Asia and Oceania (CDNLAO) - 

The 28th international conference of Heads of National Libraries in Asia and Oceania officially opened in Jakarta today. The 28th General Conference of Directors of National Libraries in Asia and Oceania (CDNLAO) was held offline and online and was attended by representatives from more than 30 countries from Asia and Oceania.

It is a special privilege that this conference was attended by the President of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA), Vicki McDonald. He delivered IFLA's vision and mission regarding the development of libraries and librarians in the future.

The National Library of the Republic of Indonesia (Perpusnas) is the organizer of an annual activity between Heads of Libraries in Asia and Oceania which aims to exchange information and promote cooperation for library development in Asia and Oceania. The 28th CDNLAO was officially opened by the Head of National Library, Muhammad Syarif Bando, and carried the theme Library Service Impacts on Community: Sustainability, Inclusion, and Innovation.

Presenting virtually from Brisbane, Australia, the President of IFLA appreciated the 28th CDNLAO Conference and thanked him for the invitation. He conveyed IFLA's vision is to achieve a strong and unified library field, by empowering a literate, informative, and participatory community. He emphasized that libraries and librarians have a role to support government work.

He recounted attending Professor Emeritus Peter Coaldrake's speech in Australia. In the oration, the professor said that "The government must bear the burden of society's biggest challenges". Vicki stated that representatives of national libraries around the world have largely the same job, which are responsible for documenting the history of each country's jurisdiction, providing reference and research services, facilitating and encouraging new research.

“So, reflecting on Professor Coaldrakes' statement, I see that you are also focused on the complex problems of today's society. As a librarian and library leader, I believe our challenge is to consider how we can work with governments to support their work in addressing and resolving community challenges,” said Vicki, Tuesday (25/10/2022).

Furthermore, Vicki said that this year IFLA entered the age of 95 years. This is a good time to reflect on the achievements achieved and consider how the library should be recognized for its existence. In addition, he invites to think about the contribution made to society.

Meanwhile, the Head of National Library explained that the current complex international situation is a challenge for libraries in putting forward ideas based on fair access to information. He conveyed that libraries should be fully involved in supporting Sustainable Development or SDG's to end poverty, improve welfare, and protect the planet, through the achievement of 17 goals.

"Libraries are required not only to provide services but also to take into account the impact of the services provided," he said.

According to a release received by Voice of Indonesia on Tuesday, in the domestic economic recovery, the library has an important role as an open space for the community in improving the quality of life. For this reason, the National Library of Indonesia has developed a library paradigm that is oriented towards the use of library resources, with the largest proportion being libraries for knowledge transfer.

"To strengthen libraries in Indonesia, the National Library of Indonesia has a social inclusion-based library transformation program that aims to improve community welfare through library empowerment," he continued.

This program, he continued, seeks to revitalize the function of public libraries based on social inclusion. The public library is revitalized as a center for community empowerment activities, which is committed to improving the quality of life and community welfare.

"With the tagline literacy for welfare means creating a prosperous society by empowering public libraries. This is very much in line with the manifesto of public libraries in supporting the achievement of sustainable development goals," he explained.

Testimonials from the beneficiaries of the social inclusion-based library transformation program are summarized in a book entitled Impact Stories of Library Transformation Based on Social Inclusion. After the presentation, the Head of the National Library handed over the book to the state representatives who attended offline.

IFLA Regional Manager for Asia-Oceania, Lin Li Soh, stated that libraries play a role in supporting the SDG's Sustainability Program. For this reason, the library must be able to provide access to information to the public, so that the community can develop sustainably, both socially and environmentally.

His party has created a Library Map of the World website, which contains library data in 135 countries, SDG's stories, and profiles of 28 countries. The SDG's story channel contains activities and programs related to libraries that bring about change to encourage the achievement of SDG's goals.

“I hope you can participate because earlier, Head of the National Library of Indonesia, has told several stories, how, and all of these are very important and need to be included on this website. Let's make a good impact on our society," he concluded.

The 28th CDNLAO will take place on 24-27 October 2022 in Jakarta. This is the third time Indonesia has hosted the event. Previously, Indonesia hosted CDNLAO meetings in 2007 and 2012.

The 28th CDNLAO carries three sub-themes namely sustainability, inclusion, and innovation with speakers from National Library, IFLA, Iran National Library, Vietnam National Library, Philippine National Library, Singapore National Library, Qatar National Library, and China National Library//VOI