Indonesia to send 425,000 workers abroad in 2025

It is also expected to boost the nation’s economic growth by 0.52%, according to Indonesia's Minister of Migrant Worker Protection Abdul Kadir Karding.

In 2024, Indonesia deployed 297,000 overseas workers, accounting for 251 trillion rupiah in foreign exchange revenues and increasing economic growth by 0.36%. This program also helped reduce unemployment by nearly 4%, benefiting 7.47 million workers.

Despite these achievements, the 2024 figures fell short of the global labor market’s demand for 1.35 million workers. To address this, the government has raised its 2025 target and is intensifying efforts to maximize overseas job opportunities to further stimulate the national economy.

Key strategies include enhancing workers' language skills, with English prioritized starting from elementary education. This aims to improve the competitiveness of Indonesian workers.

Besides, prospective overseas workers will undergo skill certification, safety training, and other preparatory programs.

Karding emphasized that building the capacity of Indonesian workers will also help reduce illegal labor practices and exploitation abroad.

Currently, approximately 5 million Indonesians are employed in over 100 countries, primarily Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, and the Republic of Korea. However, an equal number of Indonesians are believed to be working overseas illegally.

To address this issue, Indonesia has developed the SISKOP2MI system, a digital platform to safeguard the rights of Indonesian migrant workers and streamline protective services.