Home Affairs Ministry Holds Workshop to Expand Overseas Scholarship Access for Civil Servants

The Ministry of Home Affairs (Kemendagri), through its Centre for Cooperation Facilitation, held a workshop to expand access to training and overseas scholarships for Civil Servants (PNS). The initiative aims to encourage the improvement of the apparatus’s competence, particularly by broadening opportunities for training and scholarships abroad. This effort is expected to open more opportunities for civil servants to develop their capacity at a global level while strengthening professional and competitive governance.

Bahtra Banong, Deputy Chairman of Commission II of the House of Representatives (DPR RI), attended as a speaker at the event held at the Kemendagri Office in Jakarta on Wednesday. He stressed that improving the capacity of the State Civil Apparatus (ASN) is a foundation for realising the Indonesia Emas 2045 vision. ‘The transformation of governance will only succeed if supported by a competitive, adaptive, innovative, and globally competitive apparatus,’ he said during the discussion session themed ‘Strengthening Apparatus Capacity through Overseas Training and Scholarships to Support Professional and Globally Competitive Governance’.

Bahtra noted that capacity building must go hand in hand with bureaucratic reform, which can be achieved through regulatory simplification, the use of information technology, and the implementation of transparent, accountable, effective, and efficient governance. He highlighted that Law Number 20 of 2023 concerning ASN provides room for every civil servant to develop their competencies through various schemes, including training, seminars, discussions, study assignments, short courses, overseas scholarship programmes, internships, fellowships, and employee exchanges.

He believes these programmes are important instruments to accelerate the improvement of the quality of the apparatus while narrowing the competency gap. The opportunity to study abroad provides new experiences and perspectives that can be applied in governance back home. ‘ASN who study abroad are expected to return as agents of change, bringing best practices to strengthen the quality of policy, governance, and public services in Indonesia,’ he stated. Bahtra added that the experience of studying abroad not only enhances knowledge and foreign language skills but also expands international networks, accelerates the transfer of technology and culture, and enriches the perspectives of civil servants in governance. These experiences are expected to be adapted into innovations relevant to the needs of the bureaucracy and public services in Indonesia. He also affirmed Commission II’s support for the Ministry’s efforts to expand access to education and training for the apparatus, including through overseas scholarship programmes, viewing competency development as a long-term investment in building a professional, adaptive, and globally competitive bureaucracy.