Rano Karno Optimistic Jakarta Will Reach 65th in Global City Index This Year

Deputy Governor of DKI Jakarta Rano Karno is optimistic that Jakarta’s position in the global city index will improve this year. The DKI Jakarta Provincial Government is targeting a place in the top 50 global cities by 2030. He stated that at the beginning of the administration, Jakarta’s position had already risen in the global city index. Initially, it climbed from 74th to 71st in eight months. He believes Jakarta can break into the 65th position this year. “We have been working for almost more than a year now, but in seven months, Jakarta’s city index has already increased. Initially we were number 74. After 8 months of work, we rose to 71. I am very confident that this year, perhaps around October, I am sure the index will approach 65,” Rano said in an interview with CNN Indonesia TV. Rano said the provincial government is not only focused on physical development, but also on improving public welfare. “What is our target if we enter the global ranking? Of course, we will improve the welfare of the people. There is no point in building towers if the people fail,” he said. He also explained that based on data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), the number of slum community units (RW) in Jakarta has successfully decreased by around 50 per cent in one year. According to him, this achievement is not solely the result of the local government’s work, but also due to the contribution of the community. “We are grateful, the BPS results stated that previously there were more than 400 slum RWs in Jakarta. In one year we managed to reduce that by 50 per cent, to 211 slum RWs,” he said. In addition, Rano encouraged the public to switch to vertical housing through flats. According to him, the development of flats is a necessary step for Jakarta, similar to what Singapore did. “Because Jakarta, if not with flats, is like Singapore around the 1940s. Actually, the best example is to do what Singapore did. We must go vertical, to flats. That can improve welfare, but perhaps our character sometimes still prefers landed houses,” he said.