2024 will probably be an important year for Indonesia as the country is geared to hold general elections and to officially relocate its capital from Jakarta to Nusantara, a planned city situated in a far-flung regency in East Kalimantan province in the Indonesian part of Borneo island.

The Indonesian government has announced that the relocation would be carried out in stages, starting from 2022 until 2045, when Indonesia celebrates its 100^th independence. At the initial stage, around 16,000 people including civil servants and members of the police and the army will have to pack their bags and move to the new capital. Indonesian President Joko Widodo has also expressed hope he could commemorate the country’s 79^th independence day next year in the new capital.

The Southeast Asian nation has joined dozens of countries that have relocated their capitals.

In the 20^th century, at least fourteen countries have relocated their capitals: Australia (in 1913), Pakistan (1959), Brazil (1960), Botswana (1961), Libya (1963), Malawi (1965), Belize (1970), Tanzania (1973), Nigeria (1975), Ivory Coast (1983), Germany (1990), Kazakhstan (1977), Malaysia (2000), and Myanmar (2008). The US moved its capital from New York to Washington, DC way back in 1800.

The reasons behind the relocation also vary, ranging from avoiding concentration of power, having a capital in a neutral territory, having a capital that is centrally located, avoiding attacks from enemies, becoming a compromise (as in the case of a compromise between Sydney and Melbourne in Australia’s case), escaping the overcrowding of the existing capital, providing equal access for the rest of country, and the old capital that is devastated by natural disasters (as in the case of Belize city).

However, unlike those countries, Indonesia’s decision to shift its capital is propelled by slightly different motives.

The Indonesian government first came with announcement of the capital relocation in 2019, citing implementing equal development as one of the reasons. Indeed, there has been a yawning gap in the country’s development between western Indonesia and eastern Indonesia. The Indonesian Statistics Agency in 2018 reported that provinces in the western part were dominant in terms of the contribution to the country’s GDP at 58.67%. The government hopes that by relocating the capital to a more “central” area, it can bring in an equitable and equal development. Nusantara is geographically located nearly close to the center part of the Indonesian archipelago.

Another reason behind the relocation is the sinking of Jakarta at an alarming rate. The sprawling metropolitan – home to 10 million people – is sinking by an average of 1 to 15 cm a year, with almost half the city now sitting below sea level. The northern part has even sunk 2.5 meters in ten years and is continuing to sink by as much as 25 cm a year in some parts, more than double the global average for coastal megacities. The city is also ridden with overpopulation, traffic congestion, pollution, and is severely prone to frequent flooding.

The challenges in Indonesia’s relocation process also differ from what’s faced by other countries when relocating their capitals.

For a start, Indonesia is an archipelagic country comprising of 18,108 islands with 14,752 of them having been officially accepted and registered by the UN, including several major islands such as Papua, Sulawesi, Sumatera, Borneo (where the new capital is located), and Java (where the old capital is located and is also home to 56% of Indonesia’s 273.8 million population according to 2021 data). Relocating the seat of government to a distant location will be enormously challenging.

Putting things in perspective, the distance between Jakarta and Nusantara is around 1,400 km (870 miles) northeast of Jakarta, with the two cities separated by the Java Sea. This is unlike some other countries that moved their capital to a new location that is relatively not too far from the existing capital. Take Malaysia for example. The country’s new capital of Putrajaya is located only around 38.4 kilometers to the south of former capital Kuala Lumpur, while Myanmar new capital of Nay Pyi Taw is located only 376 kilometers to the north of the former capital of Yangon. Suffice to say, Indonesia’s capital relocation process can be such a daunting task, including in terms of logistical issues.

The relocation also comes at a time at a challenging time for Indonesia in the face of challenges. The country is still reeling from COVID-19 and still in the recovery phase. The prospect of global recession looms over the country’s economy and threatens its post-pandemic recovery. The budget for the Nusantara Project is estimated to reach Rp486 trillion (roughly around US$32 million) with around Rp 100 trillion to come from the government.

Against all odds, the Indonesian government presses ahead with the relocation, replete with challenges like no other.

Can Indonesia make history with this monumental task? Only time will tell.