Jokowi Seeks Parliament Nod to Move Capital to Borneo Island
- Move to relocate administrative headquarters to spread growth
- New capital may cost as much as $33 billion over 10 years
This article is for subscribers only.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo sought parliament’s approval to relocate the nation’s capital to the island of Borneo, home to some of the world’s biggest coal reserves and orangutan habitats, as he seeks to ease pressure on congested and polluted Jakarta.
The new administrative headquarters will “not just be a symbol of the nation’s identity, but also a representation of the nation’s progress,” Jokowi, as the president is commonly known, told a joint session of parliament in Jakarta on Friday. “This is for the sake of realizing an equal and just economy. This is for the vision of a forward-looking Indonesia. An Indonesia which lives forever.”