Indonesia Is The Third Largest Seafarer Supplier In The World After China

JAKARTA - Indonesia is the third largest country in the world after China and the Philippines as a supplier of seafarers on foreign ships, both fishing and commercial vessels. Based on data from the Ministry of Transportation, the total number of Indonesian seafarers is 1.2 million people.

Deputy for the Coordination of Maritime Sovereignty and Energy, the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs and Investment, Basilio Dias Araujo said, based on ILO data, Indonesia is the largest supplying country in the world for fisheries workers.

Basilio said, the average wage that sailors receive each month is also quite large. Starting from IDR 7 million to IDR 21 million per month.

"Seafarers, officers who work on foreign ships, get an average income, for example for ratings of Rp. 7 million, and for officers Rp. 21 million," he said in a virtual press conference, Wednesday, February 17.

Basilio said, the income of Indonesian seafarers is a big contributor to state revenue. By assuming only the lowest average income, hundreds of trillions of funds were brought into the country.

"If an average of US $ 750 multiplied by 1.2 million is taken, then a year could be around Rp150 trillion," he said.

As for now, said Basilio, the need for sailors in the Pacific Ocean is 200 thousand people. If 150 thousand people are taken from sailors at the rating level and 50 thousand from officers, the state revenue per year could reach IDR 25.2 trillion specifically for the region.

"Thus, with a projection like this the country can get Rp25.2 trillion from the seafarers sector alone, so we think there is nothing wrong with the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs to pay special attention," he explained.