Associate Professor Eka Permanasari - Building the New Capital

In late February, Joko Widodo’s official social media feed showed him conducting the affairs of state from a small hut set amongst a forest of trees. This was his second overnight stay on the site of the future Presidential Palace in the yet to be built new capital city (Ibu Kota Negara, IKN). Since announcing the move from Jakarta to East Kalimantan in 2019, this has become a pet project for the second term president, which many interpret to be his final legacy before he steps away from the top job in 2024.

The idea to move the capital away from Jakarta is almost as old as the nation itself. The megacity of over 30 million is over-crowded, choked by traffic and famously, sinking. However, with the project's first milestone to deliver accommodation and services in the forest capital just over a year away, many questions remain. These include outstanding concerns about the highly ambitious design itself and the viability of its implementation. But also, who will pay for the projected cost of more than US$35 billion? With Indonesians already looking towards the 2024 presidential election, many speculate that project may not survive past Jokowi’s leadership.

If it is successful the new capital stands to be a showcase of sustainable design and Indonesian progress. The question is, can these high design standards and ambitions be reached? And what are the risks if it fails?

In this week’s episode of Talking Indonesia, Dr Jemma Purdey chats to Associate Professor Eka Permanasari, Associate Professor in the field of urban design, architecture and Southeast Asian Studies at Monash Indonesia.

In 2023, the Talking Indonesia podcast is co-hosted by Dr Jemma Purdey from the Australia-Indonesia Centre, Dr Jacqui Baker from Murdoch University, and Tito Ambyo from RMIT.

Photo by IG/@jokowi