Indonesia officially names new capital Nusantara

Indonesia’s parliament has approved a bill to relocate the country's capital from Jakarta to the province of East Kalimantan on Borneo island. According to multiple sources such as Channel NewsAsia and BBC, the new capital will be named Nusantara (archipelago).

According to CNA, National Development Planning Minister Suharso Monoarfa said that Nusantara was chosen as it is iconic internationally, simple, and describes the nation's archipelago, the Republic of Indonesia. The name was chosen from over 80 suggested names that were submitted to the president, following consults with linguists and historians. These included Negara Jaya (glorious country), Nusantara Jaya (glorious archipelago) and Nusa Karya (homeland creation).

Both sources also stated that it is yet to be confirmed if the new capital will be a province or a city, but is expected to be equivalent to the provincial level. The construction of the new capital, valued at US$32 billion, was originally slated to commence in 2020, but had to be put on hold due to the pandemic. The parliament is expected to pass the draft law of the new capital this month to allow construction works to begin soon - relocation is expected to begin in 2024, CNA reported. 

President Joko Widodo announced the move in 2019, to relieve strain on Jakarta, according to multiple media reports such as CNBC and The Guardian. Widodo reportedly said in a TV broadcast that the move seeks to tackle Jakarta’s population density, severe traffic jams, as well as air and water pollution. The relocation plan is said to cost US$32.79 billion, though the state will only fund 19% and gather the rest from public-private partnerships and private investment. 

According to Widodo, as of 2019, about 54% of Indonesia’s population, or 150 million people, resides on the island of Java which is where Jakarta is located. It currently contributes for 58% of Indonesia’s GDP. Meanwhile, Borneo is an island it shares with Malaysia and Brunei, and Kalimantan is the section belonging to Indonesia. The locale was chosen as it is the “centre of Indonesia and close to urban areas”, said the news reports.

Photo courtesy: 123RF

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