InfoSAWIT, MEDAN – International Labor Organization (ILO) keeps expanding palm oil programs that have started since 2016. ILO though the significant progress and improvement in palm oil sectors nationally. The special thanks was managed by the establishment of bipartite organization, JAGA SAWITAN (Jaringan Ketenagakerjaan untuk Sawit Berkelanjutan) that was officially declared in February 2023.
JAGA SAWITAN is the bipartite organization between the labors (such as, from Jaringan Serikat Pekerja and Buruh Sawit Indonesia (JAPBUSI)), and stakeholders (such as, Indonesia Palm Oil Association/IPOA). JAGA SAWITAN plays important and strategic roles in industrial connection (labors) according to the available regulations in Indonesia.
Many appreciated the collaboration between IPOA and labors’ union, including Governor in duty of North Sumatera, Hasanuddin. He admired the good cooperation between both parties to get social dialog forum, which is, JAGA SAWITAN. The same agreement of commitment would be positive namely because it involves many stakeholders and labors within different interests.
County Director ILO Indonesia, Michiko Miyamoto said that JAGA SAWITAN is the history, the first model of collaboration, and the biggest one in the history of ILO. He emphasized that the bipartite cooperation would help Indonesia to implement decent work in palm oil industries heading to sustainable palm oil (plantation and production).
By seeing the progress and supports, ILO planned to continue and expand its programs in the first phase for the next three years through "ILO Global Project on Strengthening Global Supply Chain Social Compliance in Indonesia Palm Oil". It was officially decided in the 2024 National Meeting of JAGA SAWITAN in the office of ILO (Indonesia) Jakarta on 26 January 2024.
It was led by Presidency of JAGA SAWITAN, Nursanna bory Marpaung that adopted alternating leadership in G20 version. The presidency would alternately be led in each year and the first year, it is for the labor representative, Nursanna Marpaung.
The meeting was attended by the coordinators and members of JAPBUSI, IPOA, and ILO. They came to a conclusion to get some work programs, such as, to establish working group for work health and safety, gender, children, social dialog, and development trainings.
Chairman of IPOA in human resource development, Sumarjono Saragih, who is also as the Chairman Founder of WISPO (Worker Initiatives for Sustainable Palm Oil) told that there are programs to make JAGA SAWITAN more familiar for other parties both in local, national, and global levels. Everything would be managed to realize sustainable palm oil plantation through labor practices which should be the same with international level – standards. (T2)
