Foreign doctors must master Indonesian: Minister

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Sat, 03/13/2010 5:11 PM

The Ministry of Health has issued a regulation governing migration of foreign doctors in the country in the wake of the China-ASEAN free trade agreement, which includes proficiency in Indonesian language.

Health Minister Endang Rahayu Sedyaningsih said on Saturday the government imposed strict requirements on foreign doctors who wished to operate in the country that she had no worry about the impacts of the free trade regime on health sector.

“The impacts of the CAFTA on health sector are not that serious, but visible, such as migration of foreign doctors to the country,” she told Antara during a visit to Semarang.

The regulation requires the foreign doctors to master Indonesian and register themselves with the Health Ministry. It also says the foreign doctors can work only at institutions appointed by the government, but are prohibited from running private health clinics.

The work permit for the foreign doctors ranges from two years to five years.