IC FEST 2026: A Platform for UIN Jakarta Students to Promote Global Languages and Cultures
Harun Nasution Auditorium, UIN News Online – The Student Activity Unit (UKM) Foreign Languages Association (FLAT) of UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta held the International Culture Festival (IC FEST) 2026 with the theme “Unfolding Culture Beyond Nations Through Education and Language” to introduce languages and cultures. This event was presented by showcasing various achievements of the younger generation, attended by hundreds of visitors at the Harun Nasution Auditorium, Thursday (September 17, 2026).
The IC FEST 2026 series of events included the announcement of the winners for the speech, storytelling, scrabble, and khitobah competitions. The event was attended by the Head of the Student Affairs Team, Muhammad Furqon, S.Pd.I., M.A., the Chairperson of FLAT UIN Jakarta, Safira Putri Sukandar, the competition participants, and the academic community of UIN Jakarta. In his keynote speech, the Head of the Student Affairs Team, Muhammad Furqon, S.Pd.I., M.A., emphasized the importance of developing foreign language skills for UIN Jakarta students. According to him, the mastery of Arabic and English is a fundamental aspect that must be applied in social interactions.
“Here on the UIN Jakarta campus, merely mastering Arabic and English is not enough. It is practically mandatory for students to master both languages. Therefore, never say 'I cannot speak Arabic', when you are a student of UIN Jakarta," he asserted.
He added that mastering foreign languages is a crucial key in welcoming the Golden Indonesia 2045. Besides broadening intellectual horizons, language proficiency also enables a person to understand and appreciate various international cultures.
“Master languages. If you master languages, the world will be in your grasp. When the world is in your grasp, you can determine the direction and make history at any time,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Chairperson of FLAT UIN Jakarta, Safira Putri Sukandar, conveyed the importance of language in interacting and expressing oneself.
“Without language, we cannot communicate, express our opinions, or express our feelings. Through language, we can do everything we desire,” she stated.
FLAT UIN Jakarta itself is a platform for UIN Jakarta students to explore foreign languages and cultures. This organization facilitates the learning of various world languages, such as German, French, Japanese, Korean, and Mandarin. In addition to linguistics, FLAT is also active in traditional dance, English and Arabic debates, as well as English and Arabic speeches.
Various achievements have been recorded by FLAT members, including Alfin Hafidz who successfully passed the Japanese-Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) Level N3. Furthermore, a female student won 2nd place in the International English Speech Competition, and an English Education student of UIN Jakarta, Syifa Azahra, achieved accomplishments at the Asian level. IC FEST 2026 itself featured a representative from UIN Jakarta, Nur Syafika Lutfil, who successfully won the 1st Honorable Mention (Juara Harapan 1) in the speech competition.
Aside from the competitions, IC FEST 2026 was also enlivened by the Grand Cultural Parade which showcased various cultural knowledge from other countries. Mandarin culture was introduced as the language with the most native speakers in the world, rich in its tonal system, distinctive characters, philosophy, and Chinese traditional values with the greeting “ni hao”. French culture was also presented through its elegant language character and its wealth of art, literature, fashion, culinary, and history with the signature greeting “bonjour”.
In closing, the Chairperson of FLAT UIN Jakarta, Safira Putri Sukandar, added that learning a language is not only about knowing the language but also about exploring the various cultures that exist among different countries. She also expressed that IC FEST was successfully held, seeing that the attendees felt inspired to learn about world cultures.
“Learning a language means not only being able to speak the language but also getting to know various kinds of cultures, not just our own country's culture but also international cultures. I hope the attending participants not only feel the excitement during the event but also feel interested and inspired to learn the various languages and cultures in the world,” she concluded.
Additionally, Korean culture was showcased through the uniqueness of the Hangeul script, the Hanbok traditional clothing, to the global phenomenon of K-Pop and K-Drama. Meanwhile, Japanese culture displayed a fascinating blend of tradition and modernity through the writing systems of Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji, as well as the tradition of welcoming guests with “irasshaimase”, the tea ceremony, Kimono attire, to Anime and Manga.
For your information, the complete series of events regarding IC FEST 2026 can be viewed through the official Instagram channel @internationalculture.fest.