There are many opportunities in Germany, Turkey, and Japan, which are widely open to workers with specialized skills.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Indonesian government is preparing to send 500,000 vocational and senior high school graduates abroad through the SMK Go Global program, Coordinating Minister for Community Empowerment Muhaimin Iskandar announced.

At a press conference held with Minister for the Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers (P2MI) Mukhtarudin on Wednesday, Iskandar explained that the program aims to enhance the skills and employability of Indonesian graduates to seize overseas job opportunities.

“Through this program, which will begin in late 2025 and continue through 2026, we will send SMK and SMA graduates who are interested and have specific skills, whether in welding, hospitality, healthcare, or other fields,” he said.

He added that a budget of Rp2.6 billion (approximately US$155,000) has been allocated to support the deployment of 500,000 graduates to countries in need of skilled labor.

“There are many opportunities in Germany, Turkey, and Japan, which are widely open to workers with specialized skills. Those who are interested will receive training before departure,” Iskandar stated.

Minister Mukhtarudin said the 500,000 participants will consist of 300,000 SMK graduates and 200,000 individuals from the general public.

He emphasized that the P2MI Ministry is ready to implement the program, which will also include foreign language training as part of pre-departure preparation.

Mukhtarudin acknowledged that foreign language proficiency remains one of the main challenges facing Indonesian workers seeking employment abroad.

“This means we must strengthen vocational education. It’s impossible to send our workers overseas if they cannot understand the language of the destination country,” he remarked.

According to data from the Ministry of Manpower, about 1.5 million SMK graduates have not yet been absorbed into the domestic labor market. To address this, the government has launched the Quick Win Program to improve the competitiveness of Indonesian workers through vocational institutions.



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Translator: Lintang Budiyanti, Raka Adji
Editor: M Razi Rahman
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