Jakarta to become waterfront city

Deputy Governor for Economics and Development Tb. M. Rais said that the city administration plans to transform Jakarta into one of the most beautiful waterfront cities in Southeast Asia.

"We have neglected the development of the Jakarta Bay over the last two decades. We just made it into a huge basin for our garbage," he told a seminar on Wednesday.

"It is high time for us to compensate for such negligence," he added, referring to the area in North Jakarta, including the Tanjung Priok and Sunda Kelapa seaports as well as the Seribu Islands.

The Jakarta administration has given PT Pembangunan Jaya, one of the leading property developers in the country, a permit to reclaim parts of Jakarta's vast mangrove forest to develop a posh housing complex.

Rais said that developing the waterfront will also benefit the local residents, particularly the Seribu Island fishermen.

According to data from the National Development and Planning Agency, four of the 11 most underprivileged subdistricts in Jakarta are found in the Seribu Islands.

Analysts say the poverty could be partly solved by developing the infrastructure of the islands as well as the coastline area of mainland Jakarta. (09)