why Indonesia moves its capital in Nusantara

While Jakarta slowly sinks under the waters, its districts derive according to the currents, its sheet metal houses turn into wrecks. The third largest city in the world and the capital queen of the 17,000 archipelagos that make up Indonesia, in the heart of the Indian Ocean, it is abused by the consequences of climate change.

About 40 % of its streets and alleys are immersed, and the city should be engulfed by 2050. Forced by this spectacle of disaster, Indonesian power has opted for an insane company, a dream that borders on unreason: to move its capital to 1400 km away, on the island of Borneo, in the Jungle of Eastern Kalimantan. And rebuild everything from scratch. The work began in 2022. It is necessary to trace streets, erect a presidential palace, set up a health system, schools, a research center, leisure places … So many traces of a daily life to sketch.

The name of this urban utopia was carefully chosen: Nusantara -“archipelago”, in French. The first inhabitants, one and a half million civil servants relocated from Jakarta, are expected by 2045. Nestled in a tropical forest setting, selected for its low risk of natural disasters, this futuristic ecocity aims to become a modern megalopolis, in symbiosis with nature.

More than 60 % of its area – twice that of New York – should consist of green spaces, equipped with walking trails and cycle paths. For this project, 33 billion euros will be necessary, 80 % of which must be assumed by private investors. Which, for the time being, sulk the Indonesian mad dream.