The Ministry of Manpower awarded the One-Roof Integrated Service Centre (LTSA) and Gender-Responsive Migrant Worker Resource Centre (MRC) in Cirebon district with an Indonesian Migrant Worker award for providing the best labour migration services for Indonesian migrant workers. The award was given by the Minister of Manpower, Ida Fauziyah and Regent of Cirebon, Imron Rosyadi on 18 December in conjunction with the commemoration of International Migrant Day held in Cirebon City, West Java.

The award was given to Cirebon as the first LTSA that has been integrated with the MRC. This integration has also formed a multi-stakeholder partnership among government, migrant worker unions and women crisis center to enhance and expand the functions and services of LTSA to be more gender-responsive, accessible, and provide a comprehensive gender-responsive protection services for the optimal placement and protection of migrant workers.

Launched last June, the integrated LTSA and MRC has provided provides outreach services to villages, pre-post employment consultation, psycho-social counselling service, case handling, legal aid, training for prospective migrant workers and the provision of authoritative information for migrant workers and their families in Cirebon.

The MRC programme is also supported by Safe and Fair Programme: Realizing women migrant workers’ rights and opportunities in the ASEAN, a joint programme by the ILO and UN Women. Safe and Fair is part of the EU-UN Spotlight Initiative to eliminate violence against women and girls and to ensure safe and fair labour migration in the ASEAN region, including Indonesia.

After the award ceremony, Minister Ida visited the offices of LTSA and MRC that are located side-by-side. During the visit, Sinthia Harkrisnowo, the ILO’s Safe and Fair Programme Officer, explained that this integrated was the first pilot model for Indonesia and the ASEAN region.

“This is not only the first model in Indonesia but also in ASEAN, aimed to strengthen a multi-stakeholder collaboration to promote better protection of Indonesian migrant workers in all cycles of labour migration from the village level to the country destination,” explained Sinthia.

In addition, Hariyanto, Head of Indonesia Migrant Worker Union (SBMI) and Saadah Nasukha Program Manager of Women Crisis Center, Mawar Balqis, as the Cirebon MRC’s implementing partner, highlighted the services provided by the MRC that include gender-responsive labour migration governance at the village level, capacity building for local government officials and other service providers as well as strengthened coordination and social dialogue at district and sub-district levels. Other activities include efforts to strengthen village information centers, protection task forces and supports to the village-based programmes.

Promoting safe and fair migration at village level

The visit to the integrated LTSA and MRC offices were followed with the visit to one of the villages supported by the MRC programme: Gembongan Mekar Village. The village has been assisted by the MRC through its village-based management programme to enhance services delivery to migrant workers and their families by establishing a Village Task Force on the Protection of Indonesia Migrant Worker to eliminate risks of trafficking in persons and accessible information centre as well as strengthening village-based management and services and a greater involvement of village officials in the cycle of migration.

During the interactive discussion between Minister Ida and local society of the village, the Minister highlighted the important role of villages in ensuring the protection of Indonesian migrant workers by providing necessary information about migrant’s labour rights and working conditions and by supporting to the procedural skills training and migration process.

“Around 95 percent of our village’s officials are former migrant workers. They have the experience and knowledge about the needs and efforts that should be taken to improve access to authoritative information, skills training and protection of our migrant workers,” said Kamaludin, Head of Gembong Mekar Village, who was also a former migrant worker.

The village visit was concluded with the award given by the Ministry of Manpower to upgrade the village’s programmes and to include Gembongan Mekar village as part of the Ministry’s Productive Migrant Villages (Desmigratif) in 2022. As part of the Desmigratif programme, the village will receive technical and funding assistance from the government.

In addition to Cirebon, other target areas under the joint ILO-UN Women programme also received awards. One of the programme’s targeted villages under its MCR programme, Betak Village in Tulungagung, East Java, received a Manpower Ministry’s award for the best village for migrant workers.

Indonesia’s migrant standard procedure

The Ministry of Manpower appraised the contribution given by the ILO-UN Women Safe and Fair Programme to the development of the Standard Operational Procedure (SOP) on Services and Protection for Indonesian migrant workers in the New Adaptive Era. The SOP has successfully made the Government of Taiwan to open its door last November for Indonesian migrant workers.

The Taiwanese government has appraised the efforts taken by Indonesia as the only country of origin that has developed a SOP to ensure the implementation of safety and health protocols as well as the protection of migrant workers from exploitation and violence of labour rights. The SOP has been translated into English, Mandarin and Arabic for other destination countries.

“The ILO through this joint programme will continue to support the government of Indonesia in applying the SOP to all private placement agencies and vocational training centres for Indonesia Migrant Worker, including governmental training centres. We are going to conduct follow-up training and raising awareness programme about the SOP,” concluded Sinthia.