ILO helps tsunami victims find jobs
Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post/Banda Aceh, NAD
In the space of two weeks over 3,000 job seekers in Banda Aceh have registered with an employment service center jointly set up by the ILO and the Indonesian government.
The number of people joining the service will likely increase in coming weeks as the center plans to also make people outside Banda Aceh eligible to register for jobs, said a senior official at the International Labor Organization (ILO).
"The center, which was set up two weeks ago, is aimed at helping victims of the tsunami find jobs," said Peter van Rooij, an ILO senior program officer.
The center, called the Employment Service for People of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam Province (Epsnad), was jointly established by ILO and the Aceh provincial labor agency.
The establishment of such a center is of high importance as many Acehnese lost their jobs after the tsunami struck the province on Dec. 26 last year. Rooij said that at least 600,000 people had lost their jobs.
The 3,000 people were registered after the center placed advertisements in newspapers, camps and public places inviting selected skill groups to come to the center. Carpenters, bricklayers, plumbers, electricians, glazers, tilers, and painters have been invited to register, said Rooij.
Using information in it's developing database, the center is expected to be able to analyze labor market trends and identify any shortages. The center will help channel people on the center's list to get jobs that pertain to their expertise and background.
He said that the center had identified 2,289 skilled people from all over the province for permanent placement and 580 for casual work.
Rooij said that the center would provide two kinds of training to enable people find jobs. "The first training is vocational, including English or carpentry skills, while the second course is on how they can start up their own business," he said.
Rooij said that to enable people to start and maintain their own businesses, they will be provided with micro-finance for microbusinesses as well as credit for small to medium enterprises (SMEs).
Ali, 24, a resident of Simpang Surabaya who used to work on a construction project, said that he had filled in a form at the center, and hoped to get a job soon.
"They said they would contact me as soon as there was a job available for me," he told The Jakarta Post.