Jakarta, Oct. 7 -- Indonesia and Malaysia have agreed to accelerate negotiations for the renewal of their bilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the placement and protection of Indonesian migrant workers, aiming to complete the process by 2026.

The current agreement, signed in 2004, is scheduled to expire in early 2027. The two countries are moving to establish a modernized regulatory framework ahead of the expiration, as the two-decade-old agreement is no longer considered adequate for current labor governance needs.

Indonesian Minister for the Protection of Migrant Workers (KP2MI) Mukhtarudin said technical discussions must be expedited to ensure all substantive issues are addressed promptly.

"We aim to complete this by 2026....