Abdul Khalik , The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Fri, 05/02/2008 1:46 PM | Focus
Azhar Ibrahim had to find a job fast to get money for the family. As soon as he finished junior high school he picked a tourism school near his house in Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta. That was eight years ago.
"Most of my friends questioned and even laughed at my choice. They said it's a school for girls. I felt terrible but I had no choice," recalled the 28-year-old travel agency owner.
From the beginning, Azhar really loved the subjects at school, especially ticketing, event organizing and English.
Half way through the course, thanks to his fluent English, he became a tour guide, working freelance with a travel agency, going all over the country.
"Besides earning money to pay tuition and books, I had the chance to accompany foreign guests around the country for free. I got to know tourism sites across Indonesia," Azhar said.
When he finished school in 2000, he worked full-time at the travel agency to learn more about how to organize travel packages and promotion, while supporting the family and saving money.
Three years later, he left his job to start his own business.
"It was tough at first. I offered tourists very competitive prices for my tour packages with attractive content. Fortunately, several former clients liked it and tried my offers. Then it all started to work out," he said.
Now, he has a small office with four staff.
Noted presenter and entertainer Tantowi Yahya, also a graduate from tourism school, noted that many vocational school graduates have become successful.
"The vocational school gave me various skills, including foreign language abilities, supporting my career and business later on," he told The Jakarta Post.
Tantowi said people should not look down on vocational schools which enabled people from low-income backgrounds to get jobs and earn money faster, helping government to reduce unemployment.
"Many of us become entrepreneurs, creating jobs. We can also advance our studies to university level to get a bachelor, master's or a doctoral degree using our vocational school certificates. So, there is really nothing to lose here," he said.
Indonesia currently is a high unemployment economy. About 10 percent of the 110 million labor force are unemployed. Annual economic growth of 6 percent is too low to absorb the annual increase in the labor force, adding 300,000 to 500,000 to the total unemployed each year.
The Education Ministry says only 30 percent of high school students go on to university. Most prefer to start working because they need the money.
International Labor Organization data shows the number of unemployed between 15 and 24 years old has grown from 1.4 million in 1990 to 6.9 million in 2006. Only 31 percent of Indonesians in this age group have jobs. This means 69 percent youth unemployment.
ILO confirms the unemployment profile is predominantly young, accounting for 62 percent of all unemployment.
Economists and businesspeople say the main problem is not low job vacancies but the low quality of human resources. This is shown by the large number of unskilled high school graduates and drop-outs, aged from 18 to 35, among the 11 million unemployed.
They said that last year most job seekers absorbed by the labor market, including the bureaucracy, were recruited because of connections, not skills (also reflecting voluntary acceptance of low salaries).
Saidin Yusuf SP, chairman of National Education Care, an NGO monitoring basic and middle education, urged the government to reform education to connect it with the labor market, which needs skilled workers and professionals.
He called for the establishment of certified vocational schools and training centers to produce ready-for-jobs graduates and trainees to fill in job opportunities at home and overseas.
"Vocational school really plays a key role here. In Japan, for instance, vocational training has become the main supplier of workers to industry," he told the Post.
There are currently 6,499 state and private vocational schools around the country, serving 2.86 million students.
While acknowledging the role of vocational schools in providing skills to students, and helping them find jobs, Saidin said that low status and lack of government support held back potentials.
"While it's proven that graduates from vocational schools have been finding jobs more easily compared to those from high schools, most parents still feel disappointed if their children go to tourism or cooking schools or training for mechanics. It's their last resort." he said.
Fortunately, some companies have pioneered co-operation with vocational schools to provide state-of-the-art training equipment for students.
Rio Rajab, an instructor at PT Toyota Astra Motor's training department, said that with rapid development of automotive technology, new breakthroughs in engine technology were inevitable.
"We recruit most of our mechanics for manufacturers and after-sale divisions from vocational schools. So it's important the schools keep up with automotive trends through our training program," he said.
He said most schools were lagging behind manufacturer technology, for example still teaching their students how to repair cars with carburetors, while most cars now use fuel injection.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has called on education and industry to work together with government to reduce the increasing unemployment rate.
"The qualifications of university graduates are still mismatched with market demand. Therefore, we have agreed to establish better and continuous coordination. We have conducted some studies to analyze the requirement of industry within the next five to 10 years," he said recently.
Wahyuningsih, a vocational school student in West Jakarta facing the national vocational school exam along with 2.2 million students, was wondering if she would get a job after graduation as her family expects her to start earning straight away.
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