Economist: Unemployment Of SMK Graduates Increases, Most Live In DKI Jakarta, West Java, And Banten

Illustration. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - The Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef) revealed that from 2005 to 2020 the number of educated unemployed graduates of vocational high schools (SMK) continued to increase. One of the reasons is because the government is wrong in determining the curriculum applied in SMK.

Indef economist Mirah Midadan said that SMK students should be prepared to be absorbed in the world of work. However, it is in fact one of the biggest contributors to the unemployment rate.

Mirah said that in 2005, there were 11 percent of SMK graduates who could not be absorbed in the labor market. Meanwhile, in 2020 the number will increase to 24 percent of the total unemployment in Indonesia.

"This means something is wrong, either there is no link and match or the curriculum is not ready to produce outputs that cannot compete in the labor market," he said in a virtual discussion, Tuesday, July 13.

This figure almost rivals high school graduates (SMA) who cannot be absorbed in the labor market. Its contribution to unemployment in 2005 reached 25 percent and continues to fluctuate until 2020 which reaches 27 percent.

Furthermore, Mirah said that some of the unemployed SMK graduates actually live in industrial areas such as DKI Jakarta, Banten and West Java. This has an impact on increasing poverty rates in Indonesia.

"So our poor population in 2020 is approximately 12.8 percent. The percentage of poverty rates in urban areas tends to increase, ultimately it has implications for the percentage of poor people nationally," he said.

To overcome this, Mirah assessed, the government must evaluate and improve the education system in SMK. In addition, efforts to provide training must also be made so that vocational students have skills and added value in competing in the labor market.

"The government can provide training that can increase capabilities. So there is added value for everyone, especially it needs to be given to victims of layoffs who do not have the ability to modernize or the current dynamics of the economy," he said.