Development Planning Minister: New Capital to Serve as Center of Government

Minister of National Development Planning (Bappenas) Bambang Brodjonegoro attends Limited Meeting, at Office of the President, Jakarta, Monday (29/4). (Photo: Jay/PR)

Minister of National Development Planning/Head of the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) Bambang Brodjonegoro said that the new capital city will serve as a center of government, home to the country’s ministries / institutions, including the parliament, the defense security (TNI), the national police, embassies and representatives of international organizations.

Meanwhile, financial, trade, and industry services such as Bank Indonesia, the Financial Services Authority (OJK), and the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) will remain in Jakarta, he added.

“This is a concept that we are trying to emulate from some of the best practices that have been adopted in other countries,” Bambang explained at a Limited Meeting on Follow-Up Plans for the Capital’s Relocation, at the Presidential Office, Jakarta, Monday (29/4).

He stressed that the new capital will separate business and government centers. “Jakarta will still be a business center with Southeast Asian level,” he added.

He also said that the planning of moving the capital city could be an opportunity to adjust to the equal distribution of state civil apparatus.

He went on explaining that the planning to move the capital city based on a number of considerations.

First, from 390 cities surveyed worldwide, Jakarta is the fourth worst city in traffic conditions, ranks ninth in worst driver satisfaction and worst congestion, 33,240 Stop-Start Indexes and lock-up grids resulted in ineffectiveness of communication and coordination between agencies / ministries.

“The economic losses due to congestion in Jakarta area in 2013 amounted to Rp56 trillion per year, and now we estimate the figure is rising up to Rp100 trillion per year,” said Bambang.

In addition to the congestion issue, he continued, Jakarta has flooding issue caused by excess water supply from upstream areas, land subsidence on the north coast of Jakarta, as well as the rise of sea level. Half of the Jakarta area is vulnerable to floods.

The vulnerable level of floods in Jakarta is below 10 years, while ideally a city should have a minimum of 50 years of floods vulnerability.

“The decrease of groundwater level in the north area is 7.5 cm per year in average and the land drops have reached 60 cm in the period of 1989-2007. The number will continue to increase up to 120 cm due to drainage of groundwater. While sea water rises by an average of 4-6 cm due to climate change,” Bambang said, adding that the water quality of rivers in Jakarta is 96% heavily polluted and can cause significant disaster for human as a result of poor sanitation.

Due to such conditions, Bambang proposed the idea to build a new capital that represents national identity.

“We want to have a new capital which can reflect Indonesia’s identity, that is, a modern, smart, green, and beautiful city,” Bambang said. (FID/JAY/ES)

Translated by: Estu Widyamurti
Edited by: Muhardi, Yuyu Mulyani