Minister P2MI: Remittances from Indonesian Migrant Workers Boost National Economy

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Minister of Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers (P2MI) Mukhtarudin highlighted a significant increase in remittances from Indonesian migrant workers (PMI) in 2025, which has an impact on the national economy. “According to data from Bank Indonesia, Statistics of Indonesian Economy and Finance, remittances from Indonesian migrant workers have increased consistently from 2023 to 2025,” Mukhtarudin said in Jakarta on Wednesday. He said the total amount of remittances entering Indonesia rose from Rp220 trillion in 2023 to Rp253 trillion in 2024, and then reached Rp288 trillion in 2025. The increase from 2024 to 2025 was 14 percent, while cumulatively over three years it grew by 30.8 percent, the Minister of P2MI said further. Mukhtarudin said that remittances from Indonesian migrant workers drive the national economy through their contribution of around 1.2 percent to the national gross domestic product (GDP). The money sent by PMIs abroad to their families in the country also has a multiplier effect through household consumption, and consistently contributes additional national output of between Rp42 trillion and Rp46 trillion per year. The remittances are also considered to strengthen the country’s foreign exchange reserves. “As a comparison, remittances in 2025 reached around 11 percent, or about 1/9 of the foreign exchange reserves of 156.5 billion US dollars,” he said. In addition to conveying the significant increase in remittances from PMIs, Mukhtarudin also conveyed developments in the distribution programme for People’s Business Credit (KUR) for retired Indonesian migrant worker entrepreneurs (PPMI) and their families. He said that the distribution generally uses the micro KUR scheme because in the banking system it is recorded as part of general micro KUR to the public. “Currently, the banking system has not implemented a special tagging for the category of retired Indonesian migrant workers, so the distribution is still recorded as general KUR,” he said. The current focus of financing programmes aimed at Indonesian migrant workers is the KUR for Placement of Indonesian Migrant Workers and the Subsidised Housing Facilitation programme for migrant workers. Based on the Annual People’s Business Credit Distribution Plan set by the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs, Mukhtarudin noted that as of 31 May 2026, there were 19 distributors of KUR for Placement of Indonesian Migrant Workers with a total ceiling of Rp418.5 billion. Meanwhile, based on the Credit Programme Information System, the realisation of KUR for Placement of Indonesian Migrant Workers as of 19 June 2026 was Rp41.4 billion for 1,387 debtors. In addition, the P2MI Ministry also has a Subsidised Housing Facilitation programme for Indonesian migrant workers and their families, which has been distributed to 74 people during the 2025-2026 period.