Jakarta. President Prabowo Subianto arrived in Nusantara, the country’s future capital in East Kalimantan, on Monday evening to inspect the progress of construction and assess readiness of key infrastructure, underscoring the government’s commitment to the relocation of the administrative center from Jakarta.

Prabowo landed at the Garuda Palace helipad in the Nusantara area at around 6:45 p.m. local time and was welcomed by Nusantara Capital Authority (OIKN) head Basuki Hadimuljono and senior officials. The president is scheduled to stay overnight and on Tuesday visit several strategic development sites across the new capital zone. The visit follows Prabowo’s earlier inauguration of the Balikpapan Refinery, a flagship energy project led by state-owned oil company Pertamina.

Accompanying the president were Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, Foreign Minister Sugiono, State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia, Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya, and Presidential Communications Office head Angga Raka Prabowo.

Nusantara, officially designated as Indonesia’s future capital in 2022, is being developed to replace Jakarta as the country’s administrative center. The government has planned a phased relocation of state institutions and civil servants, aligned with the gradual completion of core infrastructure over the coming years.

By 2028, Indonesia is expected to effectively operate with two capitals with distinct roles. Jakarta will remain the country’s official capital under Law No. 2/2024 and continue serving as the economic, business, and cultural hub. Nusantara, meanwhile, has been designated as the political capital, where the executive, legislative, and judicial branches are expected to fully operate.

Construction momentum has accelerated in recent months. The development of Nusantara’s legislative and judicial districts officially entered the construction phase in December 2025, after the government completed the signing of all 20 contract packages under the second development phase covering 2025–2029. The agreements clear the way for full-scale physical construction in areas earmarked to house Indonesia’s parliament and courts from 2028 onward.

According to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), nearly 150,000 people are now living in the broader Nusantara area, reflecting the growing economic and social footprint of the project as construction workers, civil servants, and supporting businesses move in.

The scale of public spending remains significant. The government allocated Rp 43.4 trillion ($2.69 billion) from the state budget in 2024 for Nusantara’s development, accounting for 97.3 percent of the Rp 44.5 trillion ceiling for that year. The funds were directed toward core infrastructure, including the Garuda Palace complex, ministry offices, the Nusantara Authority headquarters, housing for civil servants, hospitals, and transport facilities such as toll roads, bridges, and airports.

Additional spending supported the Sepaku Semoi Reservoir area and flood control measures around Nusantara, Deputy Finance Minister Suahasil Nazara said previously.

The investment has had a measurable impact on the regional economy. East Kalimantan has emerged as Indonesia’s fastest-growing province, with economic growth of 4.5 percent in 2022, 6.2 percent in 2023, and 6.2 percent again in the third quarter of 2024, despite pressure from weaker coal and crude palm oil prices.

The open unemployment rate in the province fell to 5.14 percent in 2024, with about 129,000 new jobs created, bringing the total workforce to nearly 2 million. From 2022 to 2024, a cumulative Rp 75.8 trillion has been allocated to Nusantara’s development.

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