Wamenlu Havas Says Indonesia Has Proven to Be Capable of Producing Competent, Adaptive and Competitive Labor

JAKARTA - Indonesia has proven to be able to produce competent, adaptive and competitive labor to meet global needs, including the growing cruise industry.

This was said by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Havas in the "Ambassadors' Dialogue: Unlocking Indonesia's Potential in the Global Cruise Industry Workforce" held by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, Tuesday (9/6).

This activity brought together representatives of the embassies of partner countries, especially from the EU region, cruise ship industry players, education, training and certification institutions, as well as related ministries and institutions.

In his remarks, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Arif Havas Oegroseno emphasized that the cruise industry is a global sector that continues to grow and requires qualified workers in various fields, including hospitality, culinary, engineering, and operational management.

"Indonesia has proven to be able to produce competent, adaptive, and highly competitive labor to meet the needs of the international labor market," said Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Havas, launching the Foreign Ministry's statement, Wednesday (10/6).

The participants discussed identifying concrete steps to increase the competitiveness of Indonesian labor, as well as discussing opportunities, challenges, and needs of the global cruise industry.

"Indonesia is ready to meet the global labor needs and has a vision to develop as a global talent hub," said Deputy Minister for the Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers/Deputy Head of BP2MI Christina Aryani.

He said, Indonesia has a strong human capital, with more than 108,000 graduates of vocational schools in the hospitality sector, more than 21,000 students at maritime vocational schools, and more than 5,600 graduates of vocational schools in the commercial shipping sector who have the potential to fill the labor needs in the international cruise ship sector.

In this discussion, the participants highlighted the importance of strengthening English competence for prospective cruise workers, improving the quality of vocational education and training in line with industry needs, debottlenecking aspects of worker mobility, and strengthening governance and protection of Indonesian migrant workers to ensure a safe, legal, and sustainable placement process.

The ambassadors and representatives of friendly countries responded positively to the implementation of this dialogue. In general, they expressed support and readiness to collaborate, including in terms of strengthening language competence, developing skills that meet international industry standards, and exploring closer cooperation between educational, training, and industrial institutions in Indonesia with partners in European countries.

In the future, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will continue to strengthen the synergy between the government, business world, education and training institutions, and international partners in encouraging the expansion of the placement of Indonesian skilled workers in the global cruise industry and other strategic sectors.