Bukit Soeharto, a forested area between the districts of Penajam Paser Utara and Kutai Kartanegara, in East Kalimantan province, is to be the centre of Indonesia's new capital (Photo: asia.nikkei.com) Jakarta (VNA) - Indonesia’s parliament (DPR) approved the revised National Capital City (IKN) law on October 3, which not only prevents the next president from ditching the project to move the nation's capital city from Jakarta to Nusantara in East Kalimantan but also expands the power of the IKN Authority to manage its own budget.
Minister of National Development Planning Suharso Monoarfa said the new law will serve as the legal foundation to facilitate the processes of preparation, development, and relocation of the capital city.
The minister revealed that under the new law, investors’ duration of land rights is granted for a maximum of 95 years and can be extended for an equal duration, totaling 190 years. Meanwhile, the Right of Use is granted for 80 years and can also be extended for 80 years, totaling 160 years.
The DPR passed the law on IKN in January 2022 and started to review the law after one year. President Joko Widodo announced a plan to relocate the country’s capital in 2019, however the mega plan has been postponed due to the spread of COVID-19.
Located in eastern Borneo, the world's third-largest island, Nusantara is set to replace Jakarta as Indonesia's political centre by summer 2024. While many government agencies will relocate, the central bank and other economic agencies are set to stay in Jakarta.
The National Development Planning Ministry said the move will cost an estimated 466 trillion IDR (30 billion USD), with the government intending to cover 19% of the cost. The rest is expected to come mainly from public-private partnerships, as well as direct investment by state-owned enterprises and the private sector. The plan will see about 1 million people move from Jakarta to the new capital, making construction of basic facilities such as housing and schools a challenge./.
