MALAYSIA and Indonesia have agreed to hold an official-level technical working group meeting to finalise the memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the recruitment and protection of Indonesian domestic workers.

According to the Ministry of Human Resources (MOHR), the agreement was reached at the end of a discussion between both countries that was held virtually yesterday to finalise the MoU.

This shows the government’s commitment and concern towards the urgent needs of the community so that the issue of maids can be addressed as soon as possible, the ministry said in a statement today.

MOHR and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs attended yesterday’s meeting on behalf of the Malaysian government while the Indonesian government was represented by the Ministry of Manpower, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Board for the Placement and Protection of Indonesian Overseas Workers.

According to the MOHR statement, the initial discussion was held following Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s visit to Jakarta in early February, where Indonesian President Joko Widodo requested the signing of the MoU to be expedited after Malaysia expressed its commitment to continue recruiting domestic workers from Indonesia.

The MoU was inked for the first time on May 13, 2006 in Bali. Subsequently, the Protocol to Amend the MoU was signed on May 31, 2011 in Bandung which expired on May 30, 2016.

MOHR said that among the issues discussed was on the one-channel system; one maid, one task concept; salaries of domestic workers; and matters pertaining to the welfare and protection of Indonesian migrant workers in the country.

It said emphasis was given on the one-channel system so as to ensure more systematic and transparent recruitment of Indonesian domestic workers especially in terms of salaries and health examinations.

Malaysia and Indonesia have basically agreed to integrate the existing systems in both countries to implement the one-channel system.

Malaysia also submitted a counter-proposal on the one maid, one task concept to take into account the number of households for each domestic worker.

The proposal was submitted by Human Resources Minister M. Saravanan during a virtual discussion with his counterpart in Indonesia, Ida Fauziyah, in May 2021. – Bernama, July 24, 2021.