TEMPO.CO, Surabaya - Surabaya Regional House of Representatives (DPRD) Speaker Adi Sutarwijono has called for the promotion of traditional sports in a creative way to attract children and youth, following the relaxation of activities restrictions in the city.

"As Surabaya's activities restrictions enforcement (PPKM) level has improved to Level 1, we have seen an increase in public activities, including sports activities," Sutarwijono noted in his opening remarks at the inauguration of the city's Indonesian Society Recreation Sports Committee (KORMI) officials in Surabaya, East Java on Saturday.

Surabaya KORMI manages several traditional sports such as breathing exercises, kite flying, archery, kung fu, and traditional martial arts, traditional bicycling, and traditional sports and exercises, he said.

The diverse traditional sports must be promoted through a creative and modern approach by utilizing social media, current trends, memes, and news narratives, he added.

"We must also collaborate with members of the youth community, women's groups, and popular figures, allowing our disseminated information to be more popular on social media," Sutarwijono said.

He reiterated the importance of developing traditional sports as the city advances to preserve the traditional culture for the future.

"Preserving traditional sports and recreation is our effort to ensure that Surabaya's traditional character is not eroded by the city's development," Sutarwijono remarked.

Surabaya DPRD is open to public suggestions on efforts to preserve Surabaya's traditional identity, including recommendations from KORMI, he said.

From 2022, youth and sports, tourism, and cultural sectors in the city would be administered by a single government institution, the DPRD speaker informed.

"We hope the unification into one institution would allow synergy and comprehensive planning, as we aim to hold tourism events on a larger scale to attract residents' interest," Sutarwijono explained.

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