AI literacy pushed nationally

Indonesia’s vice president and the Ministry of Creative Economy pushed the same message this week: artificial intelligence training should reach far beyond the tech sector. (wapresri.go.id) Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka said on Thursday, April 16, that artificial intelligence literacy must reach “all layers of society” during a meeting with the Merapi National Economic Forum 2026 at the Vice Presidential Palace in Central Jakarta. The vice president’s office said the discussion focused on preparing “adaptive and inclusive” human resources for digital transformation. (antaranews.com) Two days earlier, on April 14, the Ministry of Creative Economy launched Badan Ekraf Digital Talent 2026 in South Jakarta with a free “Productivity with AI Bootcamp” for 2,200 participants. The ministry said the program is being run with Dicoding Indonesia through an online learning system. (liputan6.com) The policy idea is simple: artificial intelligence literacy means teaching people how to use, question, and work with AI tools, not just how to build them. In this case, the government is presenting AI as a workforce skill for office staff, creators, and digital workers, alongside technical training for developers. (ekraf.go.id) That marks a wider framing than a narrow industry program. Gibran’s comments were about society-wide literacy, while the ministry described the bootcamp as a way to close a digital talent gap and match training to rising industry demand for AI skills. (bisnis.com) (ekraf.go.id) The ministry tied that push to figures from Indonesia’s 2025 National AI Roadmap White Paper. It said 36 percent of the workforce needs new training, including 30 percent who need upskilling and 22 percent who need full reskilling. (ekraf.go.id) The bootcamp is scheduled to run from April 13 to May 31, 2026, with two online training sessions and one in-person session. Media reports said applicants must be Indonesian citizens, can be of any age, and need access to a laptop or personal computer and an internet connection. (mediaindonesia.com) Dicoding said the 2026 program focuses on AI productivity skills, while the public program page lists tools and topics including prompt engineering, ethics, adaptation strategies, Gemini Gems, Deep Research, Gemini Canvas, and NotebookLM. (sites.dicoding.com) (sites.google.com) The ministry also used the launch to argue that AI training belongs inside economic policy, not only education policy. Deputy for Digital Creativity and Technology Muhammad Neil El Himam said the program is meant to strengthen human resources and accelerate the creative economy as a new engine of national growth. (wartaekonomi.co.id) For now, the government’s near-term test is practical: whether a national call for AI literacy can translate into thousands of people completing training that is free, short, and aimed at everyday work. (liputan6.com)