Jakarta, 13 August 2025 – The Indonesian Business Council (IBC) is driving strategic efforts to elevate Indonesian migrant workers (PMI) to a more competitive position in the global labor market, capitalizing on Japan’s policy to absorb 820,000 foreign workers by 2029 through the Specified Skilled Worker (SSW) scheme.
Currently, Indonesia contributes only 12% to Japan’s SSW scheme, far behind other countries, such as Vietnam that has contribute for 59%, highlighting a significant gap in competitiveness and workforce readiness. This gap presents a golden opportunity to strengthen competencies, expand certification recognition, and ensure better labour protection for Indonesian migrant workers abroad. IBC sees this gap as a golden opportunity to strengthen competencies, expand accreditation recognition, and ensure job security for PMI.
According to an analysis by the IBC Institute, expanding the placement of Indonesian migrant workers could reduce the national unemployment rate by 0.28 percentage points and generate up to IDR 440 trillion in foreign exchange. This potential can be realized by increasing worker placements by 30% and extending opportunities to the medium-skilled segment, supported by a conducive business climate and the removal of barriers throughout the recruitment-to-placement chain.
As a concrete step, the Ministry of Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers and the Indonesian Business Council signed a Memorandum of Understanding on strategic collaboration to strengthen the skilled migrant worker placement ecosystem. The cooperation covers improvements in governance, expansion of access to international job markets, enhancement of training and certification quality, equitable financing solutions, and stronger protection systems for migrant workers before, during, and after their overseas employment.
Minister of Migrant Workers Protection of Indonesia, Abdul Kadir Karding, stressed that Japan’s SSW opportunity should trigger a comprehensive reform in preparing migrant workers.
“The job absorption potential through Japan’s SSW scheme is a strategic momentum to accelerate skills upgrading, expand certifications, and strengthen protection for Indonesian migrant workers. The government is committed to removing barriers in training, language proficiency, and placement administration so our workforce can compete in the global market while bringing sustainable benefits to their families, communities, and the national economy,” he stated.
Chief Executive Officer of Indonesian Business Council, Sofyan Djalil, emphasized that the SSW opportunity is not only about labor placement but also about positioning Indonesia as a global supplier of high-quality talent.
“The 820,000 job opportunities in Japan until 2029 represent a strategic chance for Indonesia to boost the competitiveness of our workforce. The challenge we face is closing the gap with other countries and ensuring our migrant workers are not only ready to work but also recognized as high-quality labour. With strong partnerships between the government, the business sector, and other stakeholders, we can turn this potential into real economic power and enhance Indonesia’s international reputation,” he explained.
Through the forum “Strengthening Workforce Diplomacy: Indonesia’s Strategic SSW Expansion to Japan”, IBC successfully brought together the government, industry players, and international partners to translate Indonesia’s labor potential into concrete action. The forum discussed strategic measures to expand SSW quota access, improve Japanese language testing facilities, and strengthen the quality of training and certification recognition for Indonesian workers.