Planned events at Indonesia's new capital Nusantara hit speed bumps

They had to be delayed or scaled back amid missed construction deadlines, bad weather

- Hariz Baharudin

National events planned for Indonesia’s new capital, Nusantara, have been delayed or scaled back after construction deadlines were missed, even as efforts to woo investors for the mega project continue.

While the US$35 billion (S$47 billion) construction of Nusantara will not cease, the pace of it will likely be adjusted, experts told The Straits Times, highlighting doubts about when the new city will eventually be able to replace Jakarta.

On July 15, Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo flew to the United Arab Emirates to persuade investors to put their money into the project, the latest in a series of pitch meetings he has held with world and business leaders.

Indonesia has said that the state will finance only 20 per cent of Nusantara’s total costs, with the rest coming from the private sector.

The sales pitch came after Mr Widodo, popularly known as Jokowi, announced on July 8 that he would be postponing the relocation of his office to Nusantara, originally planned for that month, due to missed deadlines for some critical infrastructure.

“If the water is ready, if the electricity is ready, if the place is ready, we will move there,” Mr Widodo said. On July 16, he cited heavy rains as the cause for the delay. “That’s normal for big projects.”

A planned ceremony to celebrate Indonesia’s 79th Independence Day in Nusantara will carry on, albeit on a smaller scale.

The arrangement, announced in June, was that Mr Widodo and President-elect Prabowo Subianto would together preside over a ceremony in Nusantara, while Vice-President Ma’ruf Amin and Vice President-elect Gibran Rakabuming Raka would lead one in Jakarta.

“Some sort of ceremony will definitely be held in Nusantara on Aug 17, but Mr Widodo has already had to climb down from his earlier ambitious plans,” said Ms Julia Lau, co-coordinator for the Indonesia Studies Programme at the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore.