by AUFA MARDHIAH / pic by TMR FILE

MALAYSIA and Indonesia have agreed to implement a pilot project on the recruitment of domestic helpers from the neighbouring country as early as next month, says Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri M Saravanan (picture).

“The pilot project aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) implementation and subsequently improve any weaknesses that arise,” he said in a statement after meeting with his Indonesian counterpart Ida Fauziyah yesterday.

“Malaysia in principle has agreed to introduce various measures to champion the plight of immigrant workers, especially from Indonesia,” he added.

Indonesia, he said, had also agreed to allow the entry of 10,000 Indonesian workers for the plantation sector, following the special exemption of 32,000 foreign workers in the sector which was decided by the Cabinet meeting on April 7, last year.

Saravanan said the meeting with Ida Fauziyah to set up a date for a sealing of the MoU on the Recruitment and Placement of Indonesian Domestic Workers (PDI) on Feb 7, and Feb 8, 2022 in Bali, Indonesia.

The memorandum agreed will be covering several crucial issues namely the One Maid One House arrangement, One Channel System and the PDI salaries.

The newly agreed terms for One Maid One House will be replacing the proposed One Maid One Task where one PDI can be employed for households not exceeding six people, while the One Channel System will be the sole channel of PDI entry into Malaysia as agreed by both countries.

“The issue of recruitment cost structure will also be reviewed every six months. This is to ensure that the structure is in line with current developments while taking into consideration flight costs and quarantine,” Saravanan said.