As a follow-up to a joint consultation dialogue last May, the ILO-UN Women Regional Project, Safe & Fair: Realizing Women Migrant Workers’ Rights and Opportunities in the ASEAN Region” organized a one-day National Project Advisory Committee (PAC) Meeting on 17 September in Jakarta.

The meeting gathered relevant stakeholders to provide advice on the implementation of the project, discuss emerging issues related to safe and fair labour migration for women and provide strategic direction on project strategies and priorities as well as the national action plan.

Priyadi Santosa, Secretary Deputy for Protection of Women’s Rights, Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection, emphasized the importance of prevention and family protection. “Understanding the vulnerability of women migrant workers in experiencing violence, discrimination and trafficking, the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment has focused its efforts to empower women to be economically independent by improving home and micro industries as sources of livelihoods,” he said.

Meanwhile, Roostiawati, Director of Labour Market, Ministry of Manpower, explained about the ministry’s programme to improve competitiveness of Indonesian migrant workers through its Productive Migrant Village programme (Desmigratif). “Considering the low education level of Indonesian migrant workers, the government of Indonesia is tried to improve the protection of its migrant workers through supporting programmes conduted under Desmigratif programme, focusing on employment service, vocational training, informational service and access to finance,” she stated.

Appreciating the built partnerships and synergies under this Project, Johann Farnhammer, Head of Development Section, Delegation of the European Union to Indonesia and Brunei Darussalam, said that “Let us all try to be connected to overcome this important issue of women trafficking and protection of women migrant workers. Let us develop the best synergies among involved organizations and institutions.”

Similarly, Anita Nirody, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Indonesia, congratulated both the ILO and UN Women for showing a joint collaboration between UN agencies in Indonesia. “The rest of UN Family in the country stands with these agencies in ensuring migration is safe and fair for all women migrant workers in Indonesia,” she stated.

During the discussion, the participants expected that the project could contribute to the improvement labour migration in Indonesia, particularly to strengthen the roles of sub-national government (from provincial to district and village levels) as mandated by Law No. 8/2017 on the Protection of Indonesia Migrant Workers Abroad.

The participants also proposed the project to support the government’s effort to develop some implementing regulations concerning the newly issued Law No. 18/2017, with active involvement of social partners and to initiate labour inspection system for the improved protection of migrant workers in ASEAN region.

Other activities proposed include capacity building and skills development for migrant workers and their families, particularly on entrepreneurship and financial management and to support various efforts taken by the government of Indonesia to better protect and empower women migrant workers and their families.

Deepa Bharathi, Chief Technical Advisor of the ILO-UN Women Safe and Fair Migration, said that the main goal of the National PAC was to ensure that programme activities conducted by the Project are in line with the priorities of the national government. “Thus, the National PAC meeting will meet twice a year as means to monitor and evaluate the ongoing programmes of the project,” she said.

Funded by the Multi Partner Trust Fund Office of UNDP, the Project aimed to address women migrant workers’ vulnerabilities to violence and trafficking, strengthen rights-based and gender-responsive approaches to violence against women and labour migration governance. The Project covers 10 ASEAN countries, including Indonesia, and to be implemented for five years until the year of 2022.