"This program not only gives good results effectively but it also does so efficiently in terms of costs," the minister noted in a written statement received here on Saturday.
Hartarto made the remarks during a public webinar titled "Bringing 16.4 Million People Closer to Full and Productive Employment and Decent Work Using Digital Technology." The event was hosted to support the 61st session of the United Nations Commission for Social Development (UN CSocD-61) that was hosted in New York, the United States, on Friday (February 10).
The minister stated that during the period from 2020 to 2022, over 16.4 million people across Indonesia had participated in the program. Out of the figure, 51 percent were women and three percent were disabled people.
"Of those who were unemployed, a third of them now work, either as owner of small business or as employee," he stated.
He noted that the program was more than just about policy, funding, or technology. A radical change must take place to a large extent, such as in culture, individuals, companies, institutions, and even in the government.
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Executive Director of the Pre-Employment Card Program Management Denni Purbasari stated that the program offered scholarships to everyone, indiscriminately, thereby allowing people to partake in available online courses that are relevant to the job market.
"As many as 12 percent of the recipients are over 50 years old, while 19 percent are junior high school graduates," she pointed out.
Director of the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning David Atchoarena remarked that other countries should follow the example set by the Pre-Employment Card Program, since what the initiative did was in line with his administration's mission of lifelong learning opportunities.
"The goal of lifelong learning, among other things, aims to reduce gender inequality and economic inequality," he affirmed.
Chairperson of the Policy Working Group at the National Team for Poverty Reduction (TNP2K) Elan Satriawan stated that according to the research they conducted in collaboration with the World Bank, 96 percent of the Pre-Employment Card beneficiaries said they were satisfied with the training received and also the immediate disbursement of incentives.
"Pre-Employment Card is the first government program in Indonesia that adopts digital end-to-end implementation and Government-to-Person (G2P) payments that focused on the beneficiaries," Satriawan remarked.
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Translator: Ahmad Wijaya, Mecca Yumna
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
Copyright © ANTARA 2023
