Indonesia Intensifies Education on the Dangers of Online Gambling through the “Bentengan” Children’s Exhibition
Jakarta – The government, through Bank Indonesia (BI), continues to intensify education on the dangers of online gambling, especially among children and adolescents. This step is a response to the increasing number of cases of children falling into digital gambling practices, which are now increasingly prevalent due to free access to technology.
One concrete effort taken by BI is holding an educational exhibition titled “Bentengan,” an acronym for “Playing and Exploring Money Through Children’s Stories.” The exhibition will run at the Bank Indonesia Museum from July 15 to August 24, 2025. Through an interactive approach and child-friendly narrative, this activity aims to strengthen children’s understanding of financial literacy while raising awareness of the risks of the digital world.
“Don’t let children fall into phishing, online gambling, or illegal online loans. These are the things we are trying to teach and remind them about through activities at the museum,” said Jurnanto Hediawan, Executive Director of the BI Communications Department, in Jakarta.
The Bentengan Exhibition invites children to learn about the history of payment systems throughout history, from barter systems and postal payments to the transformation into the digital era. Uniquely, the education is delivered through traditional games like stilts and clogs, combined with modern game concepts to keep children engaged and socially active.
“Play is important for their development. From it, they can learn integration, synergy, coordination, and even building social networks,” explained Jurnanto.
This initiative is not without reason. According to data from the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) in 2024, approximately 80,000 children aged 10 years old were involved in online gambling practices. This number increased sharply in the 10-20 age group, reaching 440,000.
The Exhibition’s Chief Curator, Syefri Luwis, added that the majority of visitors to the Bank Indonesia Museum are students. “More than 50% of visitors to this museum are children. On a normal day, we can receive up to 13 busloads from various schools,” he said.
With education designed to be fun and value-laden, the government hopes to prevent the younger generation from falling into online gambling practices that could damage their future.
