Indonesia Launches Storytelling Incubation for Future Cultural Leaders

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta - Indonesia is preparing a national incubation program to cultivate a new generation of storytellers as part of a broader effort to revive folk traditions and strengthen cultural identity among young people. The plan was announced during the 2026 Indonesian Folk Story Gala, organized by the Ministry of Culture in Jakarta on Wednesday, June 24, 2026.

Minister of Culture, Fadli Zon, said the gala was designed not only as a competition, but also as an initial step toward a larger movement to revive storytelling traditions across the archipelago. He said the initiative had drawn more than 1,700 submissions from all 34 provinces, reflecting strong public enthusiasm for folk narratives.

According to him, the diversity of submissions highlights the richness of Indonesia’s oral traditions in a country with 1,340 ethnic groups, 718 local languages, and more than 17,000 islands. He said these stories contain values, role models, and cultural lessons that can help shape the identity and character of younger generations.

“We hope this is only the beginning,” Fadli said. “Folk stories can be revived because they carry values and examples that can shape children’s character, strengthen cultural awareness, and build identity.”

Fadli also emphasized the educational value of storytelling, saying it plays a role not only in stimulating imagination but also in supporting emotional and spiritual development. He described storytelling as an important tool for nurturing children who are more empathetic, disciplined, and culturally grounded from an early age.

Senior adviser to the minister, Neno Warisman, said the next stage of the initiative would focus on a national incubation program targeting young people, particularly Generation Z and Generation Alpha. She said the goal is to build a standardized cultural framework for storytelling that can later become a strategic long-term program of the ministry.

“This is not just a competition, but the beginning of a movement,” Neno said. “Indonesia does not lack stories. What we need is more space for storytelling, more families telling stories, more teachers using stories in learning, and more young people willing to inherit the stories of this nation.”

Neno said the ministry hopes the incubation process will eventually help produce a new generation of parents, teachers, and community figures who carry Indonesian stories into homes, classrooms, and public spaces. By turning folk storytelling into a structured cultural program, Indonesia aims to preserve its oral heritage while using it as a foundation for character-building and cultural continuity in the future.