WhereIsAtlas · Capital city

Nusantara

The $32B capital being carved out of a rainforest

Transformed — Indonesia's planned new capital in the Borneo jungle - grand, partly built, and far behind plan.

Jakarta is sinking - one of the most crowded, congested and fast-subsiding capitals on Earth - so Indonesia decided to build a brand new one. In 2019 it announced Nusantara, a planned capital in the rainforest of East Kalimantan on Borneo, budgeted at roughly $32 billion and intended to be finished over decades.

It was a monumental bet: move the center of a nation of 270 million people from a sprawling megacity into the jungle. Construction started in 2021-22, and in August 2024 Indonesia held part of its Independence Day ceremony there to signal the project was real.

The reality has been far more contested. The project has faced fierce criticism over clearing rainforest, ballooning costs, slow progress and low occupancy, and domestic political pushback. President Prabowo publicly reaffirmed his commitment on a 2026 visit, but Nusantara remains a partly-built capital in the jungle - the question of what happens next is genuinely open.

Timeline

2019 — The plan is announced: Indonesia unveils a plan to move its capital from a sinking, congested Jakarta to a new city in Borneo.
2022 — Capital relocation law: A law formalizes the relocation to Nusantara in East Kalimantan.
2024 — Independence Day in the jungle: Indonesia holds part of its Independence Day ceremony at Nusantara to show the project is real.
2025-26 — Controversy and delay: Rainforest clearance, cost overruns, low occupancy and political pushback cloud the project.
2026 — Prabowo reaffirms: The president visits and reaffirms commitment, but completion is far off.

Quick facts

Announced: 2019 (law to relocate, 2022)
Location: East Kalimantan, Borneo
Budget: ≈ $32 billion
Replacing: Jakarta (sinking, congested)
Status: Partly built; contested; far behind plan

Sources

The plan to relocate Indonesia's capital — Urban Design International (2026-02-05)
Indonesia's Prabowo affirms commitment to new capital city — US News (2026-02-05)
The £26bn capital city being built in the middle of the jungle — Daily Express (2026-02-05)