During a Desak & Slepet AMIN (Urge and awaken Anies-Muhaimin) campaign event in Jakarta on Monday, presidential candidate Anies Baswedan promised that if elected, he would make significant investments to bolster the country’s creative industries.

"I call it investment. Why? Because until now, spending [on culture and art] is often labeled as a cost, which is usually minimized and optimized for efficiency," Anies said, as quoted by state-owned news agency Antara.

“However, if it's [regarded as] an investment, it’s about what we can gain from it.”

Anies made the promise after dangdut legend Rhoma Irama interrupted his speech to express concern about the creative industries.

The veteran musician pointed out that the cultures of other countries were becoming more popular in Indonesia while local artists still struggled to sell their works abroad.

In his response to Rhoma, Anies pointed to South Korea as a country that had succeeded in improving its arts sector by heavily investing in art and culture, including building infrastructure and venues, from the 1980s to the 1990s.

He then contrasted the situation in Indonesia’s creative industries using cinema chains as an example, saying that only 22 percent of the country’s regions had movie theaters.

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