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Public helps children build a better future
Environmentally friendly crafts: Several children participate in a workshop to make leather puppets with old plastic bottles at Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) in Jakarta on Sunday
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span class="inline inline-center">Environmentally friendly crafts: Several children participate in a workshop to make leather puppets with old plastic bottles at Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) in Jakarta on Sunday. The workshop was organized as a part of the Children's Cultural Festival, which was organized to commemorate International Children's Day. JP/Awo
The children of today are the future of tomorrow. This well-known, powerful statement is taken seriously by a number of Jakarta groups that aim to help children build a better future. With a lack of facilities and support for children, many groups have come forward to provide children with the help and support they need.
The 1001 Buku (1,001 Books) community has a goal to provide books to children, not only in Jakarta but also in underdeveloped and disadvantaged areas throughout the country. It also encourages children to read, a pastime that is increasingly losing its appeal with each generation.
Volunteer Amalia Hamidi said the organization was formed after a group of friends were shocked to learn of the low literacy rate in the country.
'We were shocked that such a big country had such a low literacy rate. Many children do not have access to education, let alone books,' she told The Jakarta Post recently.
Amalia went on to say that 1001 Buku provided used books from donors and set up modest libraries in volunteers' houses, all free for children of all ages to access.
Founded in 2002 by Upik Djalins, Ida Sitompul and Santi Soekanto, 1001 Buku now has hundreds of thousands of books and more than 350 libraries across the archipelago.
There are dozens of 1001 Buku libraries in Greater Jakarta alone, such as in Taman Bacaan Himmata in Plumpang, North Jakarta, and Sanggar Paksi Safa Kawijayan in Cipinang Pulo Maja, East Jakarta, among others.
* Communities in Jakarta work tirelessly to help children build a better future * Projects mostly focus on the education sector by providing books
Amalia added that potential volunteers and donors could find more information on the 1001buku.or.id website.
Another group, Jakarta Anticorruption Story Movement (Gejaber- Aksi) teaches children about honesty and integrity from an early age.
'Today's children will be the ones who govern the nation in the future. It's important that they understand the importance of honesty and integrity so they will not become corrupt officials,' Gejaber Aksi chairwoman Yeni told the Post.
The Bercerita (Story Telling) community, headed by children's psychologist Bukik Setiawan, provides space and a place for children to tell stories about their hobbies and talents in order to boost their self-esteem and spirit to study.
'Self-esteem in a child is very important, but it is often overlooked,' Bukik said. Bercerita also has an Android and iOS application called Takita, where children aged 6 to 12 can play games and explore and develop their talents.
The newly formed Bangun Sekolah (Build Schools) community uses crowdsourcing from residents across the country to help renovate schools in poor condition throughout the country.
Founder Andi Pradana explained that people could upload pictures and information about a school onto the bangunsekolah.com website.
Through the website, he said, Bangun Sekolah handpicked schools and visited them before renovation. Although fund-raising for each project takes time, Andi said he was optimistic because he knew that many people were concerned about children's education.
He also said that Bangun Sekolah had helped build a children's library for the victims of the Mount Sinabung eruptions in North Sumatra.
Andi urged Jakartans to volunteer and donate to the community. 'Currently, we are collecting data on schools that need renovating. Hopefully we can do a bigger and better project next time.'
