The city administration and the conservation board of the Indonesian Tourism Promotion Board (BPPI) will cooperate in conserving historical buildings in the Old Town section and in teaching school children of the buildings' legacies.

Setianto Pristanto, chairman of BPPI's council board, said his organization was ready to help the administration.

"If the city administration entrusts a historical building into our management, we will seek funding from our network of philanthropic friends so repairs will not be a drain on the city budget. We will make a list of heritage buildings that can be managed by BPPI," Setianto said.

Governor Fauzi Bowo said the city administration and BPPI would enter into contractual agreement thereby ensuring that conserving, restoring and managing historical buildings would not effect the city budget.

"I'm sure they have an international network with its own criteria for funding. The criteria usually doesn't fit with the administration, but BPPI has a chance to tap into those funds," he said.

As of June, there were five buildings of historical significance in the Old Town that had collapsed due to natural causes and a lack of maintenance. Of the 284 buildings in the 800 hectares of Old Town sections in West and North Jakarta, almost 80 percent are in poor condition.

Setianto also said his organization would create a curriculum for school children which would nurture their interest and passion for their legacy.

Culinary celebrity Bondan Winarno, one of BPPI's members, said the governor had challenged the organization to have educated all school-aged children in 10 years.

"Civil society is important for cultural conservation and preservation. If all high school graduates understand how important this is, conservation will start with the public, without waiting for the administration," he said.

Fauzi said the curriculum concerning the city's historicity could be taught along with local culture, which usually includes traditional dances, quatrain and music.

"That will be our entry point to educate the children but I will first discuss it with the education agency," he said.

Bondan said that to inject life into the Old Town, his organization was hoping a number of prominent cultural institutions would move into the area. BPPI would try and persuade the cinematography department of the Jakarta Arts Institute (IKJ) and a fashion school to consider moving.

"If the Old Town has new activities, creative industries will grow too. Of course, the administration must improve traffic conditions in the Old Town," he said.

He said the administration should give incentives if it planned to create Old Town into a tourist magnet because from a business perspective, the buildings were not profitable assets.

Fauzi said he had been suggesting to the central government that incentives be given to building owners who preserved their building's architectural features. He added, however, that the law did not provide for any such incentives.

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