JAKARTA - Indonesia’s Ministry of Migrant Worker Protection (KP2MI) officially dispatched 200 vocational graduates to Japan under the SMK Go Global initiative in its pilot phase.

The departure at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport on Friday, April 3, was attended by coordinating minister Muhaimin Iskandar, KP2MI deputy minister Dzulfikar Ahmad Tawalla, and commission VI chair Anggia Ermarini. 

“The dispatch today proves that the SMK Go Global program is key to expanding access for Indonesian workers to enter the global labor market,” Muhaimin told reporters at the airport. He said that the pilot is backed by state‑owned enterprises’ CSR funding and will be refined before becoming a regular placement channel.

Representatives from the Social Security Administrator for Employment (BPJS Ketenagakerjaan) and several state-owned companies were also present.

Of the 200 sent abroad, 50 placements were funded through PT Angkasa Pura Indonesia’s CSR program, 30 through PT Kereta Api Indonesia’s CSR program, and 120 through licensed migrant worker agencies, according to Indonesia’s state-owned agency Antara.

The SMK Go Global program, launched under the direction of President Prabowo Subianto, officially began at the end of 2025 to place skilled SMA and SMK graduates in overseas jobs.

Muhaimin previously said on November 12 that the first group of graduates would be sent as a pilot to test the program, with job placements in fields such as welding, hospitality, and caregiving. He also added that the target countries include Japan, Germany, and Turkey, which have strong demand for skilled young workers.

Based on data from Statistics Indonesia, vocational high school (SMK) graduates were the largest group of unemployed in the country, with an open unemployment rate of 8.45%. It’s higher than general senior high school (SMA) graduates at 6.55% and university graduates, four-year diploma holders, and postgraduate degree holders at 5.38%.

To help cover placement costs, the program used the Migrant Worker People’s Business Credit (KUR Pekerja Migran), which launched in March 2026 through 17 banks with a total financing limit of Rp331 billion. 

Each participant could borrow up to Rp100 million at a government-subsidized 6% annual interest without needing collateral, as long as they had a valid work contract.