RI's wood industry needs 20,000 skilled workers<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's wood industry needs almost 20,000
\ntechnically skilled workers in the coming six years, timber
\ntycoon Mohammad (Bob) Hasan said yesterday.<\/p>\n
He said at the singing ceremony of the cooperation agreement
\nbetween his Kalimanis Group and PT Mutuagung Lestari, that there
\nare currently about 5,300 skilled workers toiling in forest
\nconcessionaires across the archipelago.<\/p>\n
Bambang Guritno of the Center for Forestry Training and
\nEducation of the Ministry of Forestry noted that a large number
\nof skilled workers who graduated from high schools are still
\nbadly needed in the wood industry.<\/p>\n
"We cannot produce such workers in such big numbers because
\nthere are only five forestry high schools all over the country,"
\nBambang said, adding that the five schools produce only forest
\nrangers who are mostly employed by the ministry.<\/p>\n
To cope with the problem, Bambang said, his ministry will
\ncoordinate with the Ministry of Education and Culture to produce
\nmore skilled forestry workers.<\/p>\n
When asked about the forestry workers who graduated from
\nuniversities, Bambang said "we have enough stock" because many
\nuniversities have forestry faculties.<\/p>\n
Achmad Sumitro, dean of the Faculty of Forestry at the
\nYogyakarta-based Gadjah Mada University, told The Jakarta Post
\nyesterday that many university graduates are now seeking jobs
\nwith forest concessionaires.<\/p>\n
"They are now looking for job opportunities at forest
\nconcessionaires since they can no longer rely on the government
\nto employ them," Sumitro said.<\/p>\n
Yesterday's agreement assigned Mutuagung Lestari, a surveyor
\nof wood products, to conduct on-the-job and in-house training for
\nsome 500 new employees of the Kalimanis Group.<\/p>\n
"An additional 24,540 forestry technical workers are expected
\nto help increase the competitive edge of the country's wood
\nproducts, especially when the eco-labeling of tropical wood comes
\ninto effect in the year 2000," Hasan said. (rid)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ris-wood-industry-needs-20000-skilled-workers-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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