Bappenas Believes Capital Relocation Will Create New Economic Centers

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian government believes that the capital relocation to East Kalimantan will likely create a new economic center, said Deputy for Regional Development of the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) Rudy Prawiradinata.

“What will be relocated is the center of government because Jakarta remains the economic center. Economic activities are not moved, but we create new ones there,” said Rudy on Wednesday, Feb. 23.

In the long-term context, Bappenas predicted that the new capital along with Balikpapan and Samarinda will be new centers of economic growth and metropolitan areas by 2045.

"We will create 6 economic clusters and 2 supporting clusters,” said Rudy. “This is where the government's strategy relates to promoting economic transformation, including on how to optimize natural resources.”

He mentioned that as ordered by President Jokowi, the relocation of the state capital to the center of the archipelago will bring greater potential for economic development. Moreover, Java and Sumatra have made the highest contribution up to 80-82 percent to the national economic growth for the past 30 to 40 years, while Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Maluku, and Papua only contributed at around 15 percent.

Relocating the capital city, Rudy went on, is also one of the government’s strategies to achieve the Advanced Indonesia 2045 vision. This is based on the projections of several international institutions that Indonesia could be the fifth developed country in 2045.

Read: PUPR Ministry Says Every Citizen Has Rights to Move to New Capital

ANTARA