UCCN Conference, Disparekraf Develops Jakarta's Potential as a City of Literature

Jakarta participated in the XIV annual UNESCO Creative City Network ( UCCN ) conference which was held in Santos, Brazil from July 18 to 22, 2022.

The Jakarta administration is committed to realizing the City of Literature

According to Andhika Pertama, Agency Head of Jakarta Tourism and Creative Economic (Disparekraf), it was the first international event that Jakarta had participated in since joining the City of Literature in the UCCN network.

At the conference, the agency built collaborations and shared experiences from various creative cities, such as Gothenburg, Lillehammer, Milan, Quebec, Heidelberg, Krakow, and Manchester. It was also attended by Ambon as the Unesco City of Music.

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"The Jakarta administration is committed to realizing the City of Literature by running many programs and developing facilities related to literacy and books. For instance, the Jakarta Library and HB Jassin Literary Documentation Center (PDS) at Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM)," he expressed, as quoted by Jakarta PPID's press release, Friday (7/22).

As for the information, there are 138,000 book collections in the Jakarta Library and 4,395 collections at PDS HB Jassin. The Jakarta Library contains general books, and children's books, including the collection of relevant kejakartaan and so forth.

Then the collection at HB Jassin PDS focuses on documenting literary works, including handwritten documents of great writers, such as Chairil Anwar, WS Rendra, etc.

Those libraries also have new rooms, including a multifunction room, children's game room, story booth, private reading room, podcast room, computer room, and kejakartaan collection room.

Facilities related to literacy and books would also be developed in Jakarta. Besides that, a Literacy Park would be built in Blok M, South Jakarta.

Apart from that, the agency also ensured that literacy activities ran well at Taman Maju Bersama (Move Forward Together Park) which is an important part of realizing the Jakarta City of Literature.

He then asserted that the administration's commitment to literacy and being part of a global city in Jakarta is ready to host the 33rd International Publishers Association Congress (IPA) from November 11 to 12, 2022.

"Hope the 2022 IPA Congress can later become an opportunity to collaborate, exchange ideas, and open a post-pandemic creative space. By so, in the future, Jakarta will become a hub for literacy, cultural, and artistic activities in Indonesia, Southeast Asia, and even the world," he concluded.