Jakarta (MidLand) – Gapai, a startup that helps Indonesian workers develop careers in the global market, has received seed funding worth $1 million, or about 16 billion rupees, to expand its job placement services workforce.
As mentioned in the company’s press release on Saturday, the funding round was led by Wavemaker Partners with participation from Antler and Angel Investors.
Wavemaker Partners and Antler are global venture capitalists specializing in investing in early-stage startups in Southeast Asia.
In the initial stage, Gapai will use the injection of new funds from investors to improve the operational process of placing workers abroad with complete technological infrastructure.
Furthermore, Gapai seeks to revolutionize the process of placing migrant workers abroad by prioritizing convenience, speed and transparency. With new permits and processes, Gapai is able to create up to 10x business growth compared to last year.
The investment from Wavemaker Partners and Antler is believed to reflect confidence in Gapai’s growth potential to revolutionize the process of channeling migrant workers between countries.
Managing partner Paul Santos, partner at Wavemaker, said that through its application, Gapai makes the employee deployment process faster and more efficient for prospective workers and companies.
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Based on national data for 2020-2023, there has been a seven-fold increase in cases of trafficking of migrant workers from Indonesia with approximately 1,800 people falling victim to illegal placements in various countries.
To help overcome this problem, Gapai focuses on screening job candidates, conducting interviews and providing training to upskill Indonesian workers so that they are job-ready and can meet international market demand.
In this case, Gapai plays a role in connecting potential employees with suitable companies so that the placement process across national borders can be faster, safer and more transparent than conventional agents.
“Through the implementation of thorough candidate screening, Gapai aims to ensure a quality application process without having to wait the usual long wait times and everything is completed in just one or two months,” said Paul Santos.
In this way, he continued, the company gets a quick and constant flow of promising candidates from Indonesia, saving on labor and recruitment costs.
“We look forward to Gapai’s growth and are proud to be able to support Gapai in providing fair opportunities for Indonesian workers to maximize their earning potential and support their families in Indonesia,” he said.
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By 2024, Gapai aims to recruit 70,000 Indonesian workers and send 2,200 of them to pursue careers in the global landscape.
Since obtaining Antler funding in the founding phase, Gapai has been able to develop a network of 12,000 skilled workers.
“With Indonesia’s large and growing population, we are optimistic that we can double the number of migrant workers we help each year,” said Radityo Susilo, CEO of Gapai.
According to him, this year Gapai is looking to develop its business by expanding its market reach to 15 countries in Europe including Hungary, Romania, Germany and England; countries in the Asia-Pacific region such as Japan, South Korea and Taiwan; as well as Middle Eastern countries such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Qatar.
Agung Bezharie Hadinegoro, partner at Antler in Indonesia, explained that the cross-border labor distribution services sector continues to grow with a value reaching US$56 billion (Rs. 900 trillion).
“Being in a strategic position due to the demographic bonus, Indonesia can play an important role as a distributor of migrant workers on a global scale,” he said.
Agung said Gapai is poised to transform the migration sector through a combination of innovative technology and transparent governance.
“We are very excited to invest in Gapai again and believe that Gapai can help more migrant workers in Indonesia obtain job opportunities that match their aspirations,” he said.
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Reporter: Alviansyah Pasaribu
Publisher: Maryati
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