This Is Exactly What It's Like Living in Jakarta: Slum and Crowded

JAKARTA - Complaints about the substandard living spaces in Jakarta have been voiced by Fina (46), a resident who has spent 25 years in the Tambora area of West Jakarta. Due to economic reasons, she had no choice but to live in the cramped, squalid alleys that are sometimes impenetrable by sunlight. “Well, sometimes we definitely feel like, ‘Why is living in Jakarta like this?’ It’s tough, dirty, crowded. But what can you do? It’s the economy,” Fina said when met by Kompas.com in RW 03 Jembatan Besi on Thursday (7/5/2026). To meet daily needs, Fina sells ice with a barely sufficient income. For that reason, she chooses to stay in her own house rather than rent and worry about monthly payments. “Thank goodness I can still live in a place I own, no hassle of renting somewhere expensive,” Fina stated. Fina’s semi-permanent two-storey house is occupied by her and her cousins. The second floor protrudes forward. Roofs between houses stick together like a tunnel blocking sunlight access to the residents’ settlement. The lights on her terrace must stay on 24 hours a day to illuminate the alleyway. The trapped air also makes the environment very humid and often triggers coughs or breathing problems. Even to dry clothes, Fina has to walk about 100 metres to the more open area at the mouth of the alley that gets sunlight. In one RW, there are 872 real family heads (KK) settled in that dense settlement. “Regarding the slum category, it’s indeed due to the dense population. Where people build sideways, we build upwards. They even have 4-5 KK in one house. And perhaps, sorry if I’m wrong, they even sleep in shifts,” explained Didi.