Information/Campaigns

SBI Remit Co., Ltd. (Head office: Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Representative Director: Yoshinori KIMURA, hereinafter “SBI Remit”), and the Indonesian Ministry of Manpower co-hosted an information exchange business meeting for regional financial institutions of Japan on Indonesian human resources in Tokyo, on September 3, 2024. The event was attended by approximately 170 participants. Half of the attendees were from Japan, mainly from financial institutions, including local government and organizations/companies related to HR business. The Indonesian side included representatives and officials from the Ministry of Manpower, the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia to Japan, and associations and organizations relevant to HR business, such as Sending Organizations (SO) and P3MIs.

The number of foreign workers in Japan has grown to 2,048,675, a new record high. By nationality, the largest year-on-year increase in the foreign worker population was Indonesian nationals (121,507), whose numbers increased 56.0% – the highest growth rate*¹. The Japanese and Indonesian governments signed a memorandum of cooperation in 2023 to achieve a goal of 100,000 Indonesian nationals working in Japan over the following five years*², and with Japan’s local economies facing a prominent labor shortage, plus a further rapid population decline and aging of the workforce projected, there is growing interest in Indonesian human resources. During the recent visit of Ms. Ida Fauziyah, Minister of Manpower of the Republic of Indonesia, it was reported that the target number of Indonesian workers to be sent to Japan annually has been raised to 50,000*³.

Local governments that have begun efforts to attract Indonesian human resources and regional financial institutions that are advising their clients on how to recruit foreign talent as part of their support for their clients’ management strategy in light of personnel shortages have expressed a desire for opportunities to obtain information in a more direct manner. Meanwhile, the Indonesian Ministry of Manpower has voiced its desire to better understand current trends at local governments and regional financial institutions, which are playing an increasingly active roles in securing foreign talent. Responding to these respective needs, SBI Remit and the Indonesian Ministry of Manpower combined to host this seminar.

Following opening speeches by representatives from both co-hosts: Mr. Nobuo Ando, Representative Director and Chairperson of SBI Remit, and Prof. Anwar Sanusi, Secretary General, the Ministry of Manpower of the Republic Indonesia, and greetings by Mr. Shigeo Matsutomi, Senior Vice President of JITCO, and Mr. Mikio Kesagayama, Vice Chairman of NAGOMi. The seminar began with a presentation by Mr. Keiichiro Irie, Executive Officer of The 77 Bank (Miyagi Prefecture) on “Co-creation between Indonesia and the Tohoku region”. This was followed by an overview of Miyagi Prefecture’s foreign human resources and multicultural symbiosis promotion program by Mr. Masashi Takahashi, International Affairs Division, Commerce, Industry and Tourism Department, Miyagi Prefectural Government, as well as a presentation on ‘Miyagi Job Fair in Jakarta’ scheduled to be held in Indonesia immediately after the seminar, with 50 companies from the prefecture participating. Next, Mr. Yutaka Yoshida, Head of International Support Center, Solution Support Division, Hamamatsu Iwata Shinkin Bank, spoke on the need for foreign human resources in the Enshu region (Shizuoka prefecture) and the initiatives by financial institutions in the region, followed by Mr. Ryuta Sasaki, Industrial Human Resources Division, Yamaguchi Prefectural Government, who discussed the needs of foreign workers in terms of employment and lifestyle, including basic needs such as food, clothing, and housing and learning environment, as well as support systems and measures to help increase retention.

In the latter half of the event, Mr. Muchamad Yusuf, Head of Indonesia’s Labor Market Center, outlined the potential of the Indonesian labor market, which has a working-age population of 214 million (according to Indonesia’s Employment Statistics, February 2024, Ministry of Manpower), and introduced the Labor Market Center (Pasker.ID), a public agency that provides direct and simple one-stop career hub support services similar to those provided by Japan’s “Hello Work”. Mr. Rendra Setiawan, Director of Placement and Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers (PPMI), Ministry of Manpower, spoke about the current state of the Indonesian labor market, Indonesia’s migrant worker dispatch program, and its strategy for dispatching specified skilled workers (SSW). Mr. Muhammad Ali, Director of Vocational Training and Productivity Development, Ministry of Manpower, discussed Japan and Indonesia’s 31-year history of cooperation on technical training programs and the career paths of graduates after completing the program. The event provided a valuable opportunity for those in both countries involved in human resource development and the sending and intake of talent to exchange views.

SBI Remit hopes that this seminar provided an opportunity for the Indonesian Ministry of Manpower to obtain a better understanding of the initiatives Japan’s regional financial institutions are taking to utilize foreign human resources, as well as for Japanese regional financial institutions to acquire information directly from Ministry of Manpower officials, thereby facilitating the smooth dispatch and intake of human resources between the two countries. This would encourage more Indonesian workers to choose Japan as a place to work and live.

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia and the Ministry of Manpower of the Republic of Indonesia for their cooperation in organizing the seminar. We also extend our appreciation to the Japanese speakers from The 77 Bank, Hamamatsu Iwata Shinkin Bank, Miyagi Prefectural Government, Yamaguchi Prefectural Government, and all guests in attendance at this memorable event.

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