Tenggarong, February 23, 2026 — Fifteen government and private institutions in Kutai Kartanegara Regency, such as the Agency of Education and Culture, the Public Works Service, and the Tourism Office, followed a coordination meeting with the Regional Agency for Language in East Kalimantan Province (Language Agency) on February, 18. The session, held at the Agency of Education and Culture of Kutai Kartanegara Regency, began with a presentation on the cultivation implementation for the 2025-2029 period.
The initiative focused on implementing Minister of Primary and Secondary Education Regulation No. 2/2025 which mandates monitoring and enhancement of Indonesian language use in institutional communications and public spaces.
Heriansyah, Head of the Agency of Education and Culture of Kutai Kartanegara Regency, welcomed the initiative and emphasized the urgency of standardizing language in official documents and educational landscapes. He reiterated the national language policy’s three pillars, such as prioritize Indonesian, preserve regional languages such as Kutai, and master a foreign language proficiency.
Participants identified five priority actions. First, revise official document templates that do not conform to Indonesian language standards with technical support from the Language Agency. Second, improve public signage language within existing budgets and prioritizing low-cost corrections. Third, provide Indonesian language training for communications staff to enhance social media and press content. Fourth, integrate Kutai language elements into public signage where appropriate and following proper orthographic rules. Fifth, the Language Agency seeks the Regent support to mandate language improvements across all Kukar government institutions.
The Language Agency stressed that, while progress has been made, consistent implementation remains critical. Institutions are expected to begin phased improvements to public signage throughout 2026. It designated the 15 participating institutions as pilot models for language standardization efforts in the regency. In addition to maintain the identity of the state language, they drive the preservation of regional languages in Kutai Kartanegara.
As follow-up, the Language Agency staff conducted site visits to participating institutions on February 19–20 to assess current language use and provide on-site guidance. (ak)
Translated by Muhammad Erwin Darma