Indonesia’s parliament paves way for new capital

The Indonesian parliament paved the way for the construction of a new capital on the island of Borneo. A law to this effect was passed today by the deputies by a large majority.

President Joko Widodo announced in 2019 that he wanted to abandon the slowly sinking giant city of Java as its capital. The cost of moving to the rainforest-covered province of East Kalimantan: $32 billion.

Back in the day, it became known that the new capital should be called Nusantara – an old Javanese word meaning something like “outer islands” and used in everyday language as a synonym for the Indonesian archipelago.

The first authorities are scheduled to move in 2024

First, 6000 hectares of forest are now being cleared for the construction of important buildings such as the new Presidential Palace. The first authorities are due to move in as early as 2024, shortly before the end of Widodo’s second and final term.

The background to this move is the many problems that burden Jakarta. The city is slowly descending. The coastal areas of the capital, with a population of 11 million, are regularly subjected to flooding, and according to experts, the entire North Jakarta region could be inundated by 2050.

The main cause of these problems is excessive pumping of groundwater. Added to this is the daily crash in traffic and rising levels of air pollution.