The Jakarta City Council held a coordination meeting with the Regional Government Budget Team (TAPD) to discuss the 2026 employment budget allocation. The meeting was held in response to the unemployment rate in Jakarta, which requires serious attention and budgetary support.

"The legislature is the regional government and the Governor. Therefore, what we do is solely to work alongside the Governor in serving the residents of Jakarta, including on unemployment issues," said City Council Chairman, Khoirudin, Wednesday (2/25).

According to Khoirudin, the unemployment rate in Jakarta has now exceeded tolerance limits, reaching over six percent. This situation is feared to lead to increased social problems, including the potential for crime.

He believes the current allocation of the employment budget does not support concrete efforts to reduce unemployment. Therefore, he reminded the Regional Development Planning Agency (TAPD) to prioritize programs that directly address the needs of job seekers.

"People who want to participate in job training are not able to do so due to budget constraints. Budget cuts severely limit the number of training participants. A solution must be found for this," he added.

Khoirudin proposed several strategic measures without significantly increasing the budget burden. One such measure is to provide free medical check-ups and psychological tests for prospective employees through the Health Agency.

In addition, he encouraged the use of facilities owned by local governments and regionally-owned enterprises (BUMD) to support job training, such as the use of facilities for driver training and financial support from relevant BUMDs.

According to him, even though the budget has been adjusted, the Jakarta Provincial Government can still assign BUMDs as part of the solution to reduce unemployment rates.

"I'm saddened that in these difficult economic times, finding work is also difficult, yet we haven't been able to allocate the maximum budget for those who need jobs. This is ironic. I hope that after this meeting, we can work together to find a solution," he stated.