Indonesia has opened its new capital, even though it wasn’t ready yet.

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On August 17, Indonesia celebrated its 79th anniversary of independence with a parade and celebration in Nusantara, its new capital. This is despite the fact that its construction work is not yet complete: the celebrations actually took place amidst construction sites and involved fewer people than originally expected. Only 1,300 guests were invited instead of 8,000.

Nusantara is located about 2,000 kilometers northeast of the current capital Jakarta, on the island of Borneo. The Indonesian region of Borneo, Kalimantan, has an area of ​​more than 500,000 square kilometers and is almost entirely occupied by rainforest. The ambitious relocation of the capital was envisioned by outgoing President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, and was approved in 2022, when work also began.

Jakarta already has Many problems: It is heavily trafficked, highly polluted, has no parks or cultural spaces and is subject to frequent flooding. With a population of 10 million, it is densely populated, but rising sea levels on the one hand and historical and poor management of groundwater on the other are causing it to sink. In some areas, the land is also sinking. 15 cm per year.

By opening Nusantara today, Jokowi was able to participate in the celebrations as the current president. In fact, his second and final term as president ends in October.

A view of Nusantara under construction, August 16, 2024 (Reuters/Willy Kurniawan)

The project to build an alternative capital in a previously uninhabited area has been postponed several times due to various difficulties. The first is raising the necessary funds for the works, estimated at more than 30 billion euros. The Indonesian state is financing 20% ​​of the project, but is struggling to find international investors to cover the rest. There are also problems with the formation of the land chosen for the city. According to government forecasts, Nusantara will not be completed before 2045.

In March, former General Prabowo Subianto, the outgoing defense minister, was elected the new president, with the support of Jokowi himself. Subianto announced that it would continue to pursue the Nusantara project in its original form.