Jakarta (ANTARA) - Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto, stated on Friday that the Kartu Prakerja (Pre-employment Card) program is targeted to provide training to 1.148 million participants in 2024.

“On February 23, 2024, a new batch of the Kartu Prakerja program, namely Batch 63, was opened, with target participants of 1.148 million throughout 2024. The targeted quota will be executed in stages by the management,” he noted.

Hartarto, who also serves as chair of the Job Creation Committee, stated that the program would continued in 2024, as it had been proven to be beneficial to improving people’s skills and helping them get a job.

He noted that a study by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) showed that the impact of participation in the Kartu Prakerja program on increasing employment opportunities had reached 95 percent.

Meanwhile, a study conducted by Rumah Riset Presisi Indonesia showed a monthly increase of around 17–21 percent in the income of the program’s beneficiaries as compared to non-beneficiaries of the program.

Hartarto stated that in 2024, the program will be expanded to reach more people in remote and underdeveloped areas and will encourage the involvement of training institutions in more districts and cities.

Furthermore, the quality of training will be improved by adding a self-paced learning mode that can not only provide flexibility but also require a higher level of commitment from the training participants.

He expressed hope that the community would make the most of the upskilling and reskilling opportunities provided through the program.

Hartarto also said that his committee, which is mandated to implement the program, will seek cooperation with additional stakeholders, especially ministries and institutions, to provide various forms of quality training aligned with current job market demands.

He invited companies that have their own corporate university to participate in developing the Kartu Prakerja program.

”Let us collaborate to improve the quality of our workforce,” he said.

Related news: PraKerja helps five million people open their first bank accounts
Related news: Prakerja benefits significant, reveal separate research findings

Translator: Uyu Septiyati, Raka Adji
Editor: Anton Santoso
Copyright © ANTARA 2024