The Youth and Sports Ministry pointed to the still quite low degree of physical fitness among Indonesian students.

“Judging from the degree of physical fitness, only 0.14 (fell in the) very good (category). This is a (matter of) concern for all of us, yes, the fitness level is very low,” Assistant Deputy for Educational Sports Management of the Youth and Sports Ministry Ary Moelyadi noted during a webinar attended here on Wednesday.

Moelyadi further stated that only 2.1 percent of the students had physical fitness that fell in the very active category.

Moelyadi emphasized that the low degree of fitness among students was attributed to several problems in sports education, such as rampant juvenile delinquency as of late.

Moreover, sports is not considered as part of a healthy lifestyle and merely to follow the style of a preferred public figure for some time, he remarked.

Furthermore, Moelyadi noted that students had also been heavily influenced by technological advancements from the fourth industrial revolution, so they spent more time playing with their gadgets.

Moelyadi mentioned that the lack of physical activity coupled with inadequate facilities for sports education and extracurricular activities for students at school were the reasons behind the lack of interest in sports among them.

“Moreover, in the last two years, we have experienced the pandemic. Of course, children are lazy to move, at most, they would just sleep and eat, play online games, and so on. We have to try some innovations, so that these children can stay active,” he affirmed.

To be able to realize a golden Indonesia in 2045, Moelyadi highlighted that the government should facilitate the fulfillment of children’s rights for growth and development, health and character education, as students are the future leaders, who will contribute both in the government and private sector.

“Hence, healthy, fit, productive, that’s our expectation,” he added.

Source: Antara News