Last week, Indonesia’s parliament passed a bill to relocate the country’s capital from Jakarta to the jungles of Kalimantan, on Indonesia’s portion of the Borneo island, about 2,000 kilometres away.
The bill, known as the State Capital Law, outlines a governing body called the State Capital Authority and specifies how the $32 billion dedicated to its construction will be spent. Under the project, Jakarta will remain the country’s commercial and financial centre, while the government’s administrative functions will move to East Kalimantan. The new capital will be based in the regions of North Penajam Paser and Kutai Kartanegara.
Indonesia has named its new capital Nusantara, which is an old Javanese term that translates to “archipelago.” Planning Minister Suharso Monoarfa said that the name was chosen because it reflected the country’s geography, and was internationally iconic. “The relocation of the capital city to Kalimantan is based on several considerations, regional advantages, and welfare. With the vision of the birth of a new economic centre of gravity in the middle of the archipelago […] The new capital has a central function and is a symbol of the identity of the nation, as well as a new centre of economic gravity,” he added.
The need for a new capital was prompted by concerns over the sustainability of Indonesia’s current political centre, Jakarta, which sits on swampy ground near the sea. The government hopes that the move will reduce the burden on the notoriously congested city of 10 million, which suffers regular flooding. According to the World Economic Forum, Jakarta is one of the world’s fastest sinking cities. Studies show that some portions of north Jakarta, including even the seawall designed as a buffer for communities, are sinking at an estimated 25 centimetres a year, due to subsidence and the over-extraction of groundwater.
🇮🇩 Indonesian announces that the country's new capital in East Kalimantan province will be named NUSANTARA.
— 𝙍𝘼𝙐𝙇 (@IcanArgue) January 17, 2022
In Indonesian, Nusantara means archipelago.#Nusantara #Indonesia pic.twitter.com/G1Lnq66YH7
Java, with a population of 147.7 million people, is the world’s most populous island. It is home to 55% of the country’s population and more than half of its economic activity. In contrast, Kalimantan is almost four times bigger and is situated in the centre of Indonesia, which is one of the country’s least prone areas to natural disasters.
President Joko Widodo, also known as Jokowi, first announced the plan to move the capital in 2019. Jokowi aimed to relieve Jakarta of its huge environmental challenges and to redistribute wealth. However, the plan faced delays due to the pandemic. With the recent passage of the bill, construction of the new capital could start this year.
While Jokowi’s government envisions the new capital as a low-carbon “super hub” that will encourage the growth of multiple sectors, including pharmaceutical, health, and technology and promote sustainable growth, environmentalists fear otherwise. Environmental groups have warned that moving the capital will increase pollution which is already on the rise in East Kalimantan due to coal mining and palm oil industries, and cause destruction of rainforests that are home to orangutans, sun bears, and long-nosed monkeys.