130,522 unemployed back to work in North Jakarta

JAKARTA (JP): Labor-intensive projects in North Jakarta have put 130,522 jobless back to work, an official said yesterday.

North Jakarta Deputy Mayor Sarimun Hadisaputra explained the program was conducted in two phases covering 35 geographical areas in the city's poorest mayoralty.

"The first phase involved 18 areas and started on Jan. 8, while the second stage in 17 spots started on March 2. Both are scheduled to end this month.

"In the first stage, we spent Rp 850 million of the funds allocated by the National Development Planning Board (Bappenas). In the second stage of the project, we have also got Rp 500 million in additional funds from Bappenas."

A total of Rp 978.91 million has been spent in both phases of the project in North Jakarta.

He said about 10 percent of the labor-intensive funds were absorbed in operational fees and other supporting necessities under a gubernatorial decree.

"All the labor here works from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. every day.

"North Jakarta has reportedly absorbed the largest number of unskilled labor in Jakarta ... because there are many industrial sites and port complexes which have been hardest hit by the impact of monetary crisis," he said.

North Jakarta has the largest number of slum areas in the city, with eight subdistricts listed among the poorest residential sites.

Sites for labor-intensive projects in the mayoralty include Kalibaru, Cilincing, Papanggo, Koja, Pademangan, Semper, Penjaringan, Kapuk Muara, Kapuk Kamal and Pulau Panggang.

"In Marunda, the workers are also employed to build roads and lanes in their kampongs, with the total length covering about two kilometers," Sarimun said.

In the Thousand Island district, labor-intensive projects are being conducted at Pulau Pramuka.

"The form of labor-intensive project there is different. They don't clear gutters or dikes. Jobless people at Pulau Pramuka are currently building a three-kilometer road linking the northern side to the southern part of the island."

The mayoralty is also planting 7,000 saplings of the bintaro species across the 34 subdistricts under the program, he said.

Sarimun also revealed that 33 companies in North Jakarta -- ranging from plastics firms to electronic manufacturers -- had laid off 3,548 workers since January.

"This creates a new burden for the mayoralty as most of those workers are skilled workers who cannot be involved in the labor- intensive program, which is mainly intended for unskilled labor," he said.

The mayoralty is currently devising a more comprehensive program to incorporate needs of different types of jobless, he said, with the program to be submitted to the municipality in the near future.

"For the next labor-intensive project starting April 1 to July 31, we will get part of the Rp 8 billion allocated in the city budget."

The head of the city office of the Ministry of Manpower, R.H Sudhartin, announced yesterday that projects specifically for female workers would start in May.

"The projects will be organized jointly with related agencies and also involve private businesses, especially in tailoring and handicraft making," he said.

Sudhartin said the administration would recruit 100 female workers in the first step of the project.

About 6,000 female workers had been laid off up to early this month, according to the city manpower office. (edt/ind)