Almost 17,000 Timorese jobless

Almost 17,000 Timorese jobless

DILI: Finding work for the 16,897 job seekers registered at
the local manpower office here remains a major headache for the
local government.

Office chief Mudjihartono said last year the registered
jobless numbered almost 18,000 and only a small percentage of
those have since found work.

The provincial government has made several breakthroughs in
providing employment, such as linking with companies in other
provinces and resettling them under the state-sponsored
transmigration program.

Over the past two decades, East Timor has sent 2,205 job
seekers to Lampung, Riau, Jambi, North Sulawesi, Central
Kalimantan, South Sulawesi and Maluku.

By the end of this year the provincial government plans to
dispatch another 485 job seekers to North Sulawesi, Maluku,
Kalimantan and Riau, Antara reported. (pan)