HKI requests ease of establishing vocational institutions in Industrial Estate Bill

The Indonesian Industrial Estates Association (HKI) has stated that the Industrial Estate Bill should include provisions to facilitate the establishment of educational or vocational institutions to prepare a workforce that meets industry needs. “The norm in the law we are proposing provides ease for the construction of educational facilities,” said HKI Deputy Chairman Didik Prasetiyono in Jakarta on Monday, during a Public Hearing Meeting of the Industrial Estate Bill Working Committee. According to him, a current problem in industrial estates is the difficulty of obtaining permits to establish training centres or vocational schools that suit industry requirements. Therefore, Didik expressed hope that the Industrial Estate Bill would ease the licensing process for establishing educational or vocational institutions as needed. “The availability of skilled labour has not fully met the needs of industry. So, in developing industrial estates, it is important to facilitate vocational training and competency development centres,” he said. He added that the link and match between vocational education curricula and industry needs requires stronger collaboration with vocational high schools, polytechnics, and training centres, which currently lack a solid institutional foundation. Didik noted that when all these elements are within one industrial estate, the skilled workforce required by investors can be supplied. He explained that the lack of skilled labour remains an obstacle for investors when they want to open job vacancies. “We encourage the implementation of apprenticeship programmes and competency certification with options based on tenant needs. It is important to conduct a needs assessment to determine what tenants require, so that surrounding vocational institutions can customise appropriate curricula and ensure link and match with the region’s development needs,” he added.