Did you know that Indonesia has the world’s fourth-largest population and that due to a shortage of domestic jobs, many of its citizens seek employment abroad? Known as the Pekerja Migran Indonesia (Indonesian Migrant Workers), it is estimated that around 4.5 million of its citizens work overseas.
However, despite not being in the country, these migrant workers actually contribute a lot to Indonesia’s economy. In fact, as reported by Tempo, Indonesia’s income from Pekerja Migran Indonesia reached a whopping IDR251 trillion or RM67 billion last year, the second largest after the oil and gas sector.
Indonesian migrant workers in Malaysia sent back RM15.58 billion to their country in the first 9 months of 2024
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This is thanks to Indonesians working abroad sending money back to their home country, and according to the latest data from Bank Indonesia as shared by Kadata.co.id, remittance from Indonesian migrant workers in Malaysia back to their home country was the highest last year.
Specifically, Indonesian migrant workers in Malaysia sent back USD3.52 billion or RM15.58 billion to Indonesia in the first nine months of 2024 alone!
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During the same period, Pekerja Migran Indonesia in Saudi Arabia sent back the second-highest amount at USD2.98 billion (RM13.17 billion).
This is followed by Indonesian migrant workers in Taiwan (USD1.84 billion/RM8.13 billion) and Hong Kong (USD1.62 billion/RM7.16 billion).
Overall, from January to September 2024, USD11.63 billion (RM51.40 billion) was remitted to Indonesia by Pekerja Migran Indonesia, which is 10% more compared to the year prior.
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Of course, remittance from Malaysia being the highest isn’t all that surprising considering our country has the highest number of migrant workers from Indonesia.
In 2020, it was estimated that there were 2.7 million Indonesian migrant workers in Malaysia, though only 1.6 million of them went through regular channels.
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So, what do you guys think of the statistics? Share your thoughts with us in the comments!
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