VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

A screenshot of Vice Foreign Minister Mahendra Siregar during a virtual seminar "Batik: Cultural Heritage and Creative Economic Asset of Indonesia" held at the Foreign Ministry on Friday (Aug 28, 2020). (ANTARA/Suwanti)

The diplomatic education curriculum will feature batik as a subject as part of the Foreign Ministry’s endeavors to strengthen and sharpen Indonesian batik diplomacy abroad, Vice Foreign Minister Mahendra Siregar stated.

"Batik subject will especially be included in the module or curriculum of diplomatic education," he remarked during a virtual seminar "Batik: Cultural Heritage and Creative Economic Asset of Indonesia" held at the Foreign Ministry on Friday.

"That has become (our) commitment, and a team of the education and training center along with experts are in the process of drafting it," he noted.

The Foreign Ministry has, since long, introduced batik in foreign countries. In 2008, Indonesia had launched a campaign to rally support for the nomination for batik's inscription into UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

UNESCO officially declared batik as an intangible cultural heritage on October 2, 2009. National Batik Day has been observed annually ever since.

In the run-up to the 11th National Batik Day, the Foreign Ministry has been readying several activities to intensify batik promotion since batik is an integral part of the Indonesian diplomacy.

"We would like to strengthen and sharpen an integrated promotion or marketing program. Although we have, so far, conducted promotion programs, they are sometimes incidental," he stated.

“The ministry will also directly contribute to responding to the needs of Indonesian batik producers and craftsmen in the wake of the pandemic," Siregar noted.  (ANTARA)