Mataram Residents' Interest in Working Abroad Grows, Malaysia Remains Top Destination

Public interest in working abroad remains very high in Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara. A total of 560 residents registered as Indonesian migrant workers in just six months, from January to June 2026. “Yes, there is a lot of interest,” said the Head of the Mataram Manpower Office, Wayan Putra Ekantara, on Friday (10/7/2026). The favourite destination countries for these migrant workers from Mataram include Malaysia, Taiwan, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Japan, Brunei Darussalam, Turkey, Bulgaria, Italy, and Croatia. “The placement process for all registered and selected migrant workers will take around one to three months before they depart for the destination country, depending on the visa,” Ekantara explained. Meanwhile, from January to July 2026, the Mataram Manpower Office recorded that six migrant workers were forced to return to Indonesia due to various factors, ranging from non-procedural issues to a fatality. “Three people were deported for being non-procedural migrant workers, two were prevented from departing, and one person passed away,” Ekantara stated. According to data from the Mataram Manpower Office, the number of migrant workers who departed for Malaysia was recorded at 375 people. This was followed by Taiwan with 42 people, Saudi Arabia with 34 people, Singapore with 31 people, Japan with 16 people, and the remainder spread across several other countries.