Indonesia’s Banten, Japan’s Mie explore HR development cooperation

3 hours ago

Tangerang, Banten (ANTARA) – The Provincial Government of Banten, Indonesia, and the Mie Prefectural Assembly of Japan are exploring cooperation in human resource development as part of efforts to establish a sister-province relationship.

Banten Governor Andra Soni said in Tangerang, Banten, on Wednesday that provincial officials have met twice with the Japanese delegation – first on May 6, 2025, and most recently on Aug. 3, 2026.

During the latest meeting, the provincial government hosted the delegation for a tour of the Banten Industrial Training Center’s training facilities in South Tangerang.

Led by Mie Prefectural Assembly Chairman Inagaki, the delegation’s visit is expected to pave the way for Japanese investment in Banten.

“We showed them our training facilities as we gradually work toward a formal sister-province partnership. We will facilitate investors from Mie Prefecture looking to invest in Banten,” Andra said in a statement.

According to him, Banten aims to establish sister-province ties with several overseas provinces. The provincial government has also established a promotional office to attract investment to Banten.

“Banten Province is wide open to investment, particularly projects aligned with the president’s priorities, especially downstreaming,” the governor emphasized.

Virgojanti, head of the Investment and One-Stop Integrated Services Office of Banten, said the Mie Prefectural Assembly delegation responded positively following its initial visit, with human resource development remaining a primary area of cooperation.

Looking ahead, she said, business cooperation between Banten Province and Mie Prefecture remains highly promising, noting that Banten has a large productive-age population to support such collaboration.

Meanwhile, Septo Kalnadi, head of the Manpower Office of Banten, said the next challenge is ensuring that training programs match the machinery and technology currently used by industry. For Indonesian workers in Japan, the main challenges involve language proficiency and cultural adaptation.

Septo also noted that the Banten Provincial Government operates a vocational training center in Pandeglang District, which could be further developed to provide skills training tailored to the needs of industries in Mie Prefecture.