Jakarta. President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo said on May Day that the government's endeavor to woo investors into the country was to fuel job creation, as recent statistics showed that the investment amassed in the first quarter of 2023 has created jobs for 384,892 Indonesians.

"The government is trying to attract investment both from home and abroad in an effort to spur job opportunities," Jokowi said in a recorded statement commemorating the 2023 Labor Day.

"We also wish to lower the unemployment rate and enhance the workers' welfare [by attracting investment]," he said.

Also, Jokowi called for Indonesians to make May Day a momentum to protect labor rights, in addition to better employee welfare and more job opportunities. The president urged for a reskilling and upskilling of the Indonesian workforce, among others, through pre-employment programs and training centers.

The Investment Ministry not long ago reported that Indonesia drew Rp 328.9 trillion ($22.4 billion) from both foreign and domestic investors in January-March 2023. About Rp 177 trillion came from foreign direct investment (FDI). From the combined investment, some 165,797 Indonesians are working on FDI-related projects, while 219,095 others are on projects brought by domestic investors. 

According to Investment Minister Bahlil Lahadalia, the investments coming to Indonesia are mostly in high-technology sectors. “So I do admit that the total investment is not proportional to the number of jobs created,” Bahlil told a recent press briefing. 

Basic metal, metal products, non-machinery, and its equipment industry was the most popular sector among investors in Q1-2023. Investment in this sector, which is primarily tech-powered, reached Rp 46.7 trillion. 

Mining and pharmaceutical industries, which collected Rp 33.5 trillion and Rp 22.6 trillion in investment respectively, also heavily rely on machinery. However, the ministry’s quarterly report did not include the micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) sector.

Bahlil said the government had always urged the private sector to hire people for jobs doable by humans, even if it is a high-tech industry. 

“We cannot focus on the [high-tech] sector alone. We need to work on the labor-intensive sectors, namely the MSMEs. So we ‘blend’ them. If humans can get the job done, then hire people. So don’t use technology for everything,” Bahlil said.

“And 384,892 people are those who work directly on the projects. The indirect job opportunities such as those generated by catering or logistics can be four or fivefold,” Bahlil added. 

The National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) statistics show Indonesia’s unemployment rate stood at 5.86 percent as of 2022. The government has set a goal to slash the unemployment rate to between 3.6 percent and 4.3 percent by 2024.

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