Indonesia’s future capital, Nusantara, is progressing as planned and is far from a “ghost town”, Vice-President Gibran Rakabuming Raka said, dismissing negative international media reports.
In an interview on Jan 29, Gibran confirmed that construction and the phased relocation of civil servants are on schedule, with around 4,000 government employees expected to move this year, with facilities for his own office nearing completion.
Gibran highlighted the infrastructure already in place, including schools, hospitals, civil servant apartments and ministerial offices, as evidence of steady progress.
“We have stayed at the civil servants’ apartment towers. The ministerial offices are there. From what I’ve seen, the progress is quite solid…Nusantara is not a ghost town,” he said as reported by CNA quoting news outlet Jakarta Globe.
Gibran highlighted that the legislative and judicial complexes are targeted for completion by 2028, supporting President Prabowo Subianto’s plan to fully establish Nusantara as the political capital.
The project, a continuation of former President Joko Widodo’s initiative, aims to relieve Jakarta of congestion and flooding while promoting economic development in Indonesia’s eastern provinces.
Prabowo’s recent visit to Nusantara, including stops in Balikpapan and Banjarbaru, reaffirmed the government’s commitment to the US$30 billion project, alongside inaugurations of tuition-free schools and a US$7.4 billion upgrade to Pertamina’s Balikpapan refinery, which will boost diesel production and reduce fuel imports.
