Indonesia to offer export training to returned migrant workers

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Indonesian government is preparing an export technical assistance program to help former migrant workers and their families establish export-ready businesses upon returning home.

The initiative was formalized through a memorandum of understanding (MoU) and a cooperation agreement signed between the Indonesian Quarantine Authority (Barantin) and the Ministry for the Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers (KP2MI) here on Tuesday (November 3).

Under the partnership, Barantin has made its Quarantine Export Clinics available to former migrant workers running micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), especially those seeking to enter international markets.

Through these clinics, entrepreneurs will receive coaching on quarantine compliance, destination-country product specifications, and regulatory procedures required to secure export certification.

"We will train them to meet international standards tailored to the specific requirements of destination countries," Barantin Head Abdul Kadir Karding said.

The international experience, language skills, and networks acquired abroad provide these workers with a strategic advantage in developing businesses in their hometowns, he added.

However, Karding noted that while many workers set up enterprises after their overseas employment contracts end, they often lack the institutional support needed to refine their products and meet rigorous global trade benchmarks.

Barantin currently operates Quarantine Export Clinics across all 38 Indonesian provinces to help prospective exporters navigate sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) regulations, product traceability, and non-tariff trade barriers.

Following the agreement, both agencies are scheduled to implement measurable follow-up programs, including hands-on technical training and field mentoring.

"The success of a partnership is not measured by the document signed, but by the concrete benefits delivered to the community," Karding said.

The economic empowerment initiative will also cover migrant workers’ families and entrepreneurs under the Educative, Advanced, Safe, and Prosperous Migrant Villages (Desa Migran EMAS) program. Participants will be trained to upgrade local commodities into export-grade goods.

Speaking on the same occasion, Minister for the Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers Mukhtarudin said the partnership aims to expand post-deployment economic empowerment alongside ongoing efforts to protect workers abroad.

"We hope this synergy will not only provide protection and streamlined administrative services for our migrant workers, but also create sustainable economic pathways for them and their families once they return," Mukhtarudin said.

According to ministry data, the Desa Migran EMAS program has been established across 756 villages and urban wards in 27 provinces, serving as a primary platform to foster community-level economic resilience.

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Translator: Aria Ananda, Uyu Liman
Editor: Primayanti
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