Jakarta sinking prompts Indonesia's $30 bn Nusantara new capital plan

Jakarta, Indonesia's capital and one of the world's largest cities, is rapidly sinking as parts of the northern area subside up to 25 cm per year, leaving about 40 % of the city below sea level and some neighborhoods up to four metres lower than in the 1970s. Experts say the primary cause is excessive groundwater extraction, which destabilises the clay‑sand layers beneath the city, rather than sea‑level rise alone.

To alleviate pressure on the sinking metropolis, the Indonesian government has embarked on constructing a new capital called Nusantara on the island of Borneo in East Kalimantan. The project, launched in 2022, is estimated to cost more than US$30 billion, with the first phase slated for completion by 2045 and a symbolic relocation of several state agencies scheduled for 17 August 2024, Indonesia’s Independence Day. Former President Joko Widodo announced the move in 2019, and geologist Harry Andreas of the Bandung Institute of Technology warns that even a large sea wall would not solve the long‑term subsidence problem.