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Ministry to open six polytechnic schools to fill skills gap
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Economy ride: President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo (left) and Industry Ministry Airlangga Hartarto inspect a prototype of multipurpose car designed for local farmers during a visit to Boyolali, Central Java, on Jan. 30. (Courtesy of Industry Ministry/File)
T
he Industry Ministry plans to open six polytechnic schools by 2019 in an effort to help fill the gap of skilled workers in the country's manufacturing sector.
The ministry's training and education center head, Mujiyono, said the new education facilities would add to the existing 10.
“All the new polytechnic schools will adopt a dual system that allows students to learn both theory and practice,” he said recently.
(Read also: Industry Ministry eyes 220,000 certified workers in 2017)
The schools will be established in Semarang, Central Java, specializing in furniture; in Bantaeng, South Sulawesi, specializing in metal processing; in Dumai, Riau, specializing in palm oil processing; and in Batu Licing, Souh Kalimantan, for the steel industry.
Two other schools offering skills training to support miscellaneous sectors will be built in Bintuni, West Papua and Sei Mangkei, North Sumatra.
Businesses have highlighted difficulties in finding manpower with proper skills despite a workforce of 100 million people in the country.
The manufacturing sector needs a workforce of 589,447 people this year, with ministry data showing the number will increase to 619,732 people by 2019.
