TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Minister of Public Works Dody Hanggodo revealed plans for President Prabowo Subianto to move to the Nusantara Capital or IKN. According to Dody, the head of state aims to start working in IKN on August 17, 2028.

"No later than August 17, 2029. The executive, legislative, and judicial bodies, along with all civil servants (will move) there," Dody said during a meeting at the Ministry of Public Works on Friday, December 6, 2024.

Dody mentioned a possible delay in the development of the IKN. This is due to other programs that are priorities for the government. One of them is food self-sufficiency. As a result, the Ministry of Public Works is currently focused on providing water for agriculture.

Nevertheless, Dody remains optimistic that IKN's development will not be too far off track. Looking at the IKN planning schedule, the construction of the new capital in East Kalimantan will be carried out in 5 stages until 2045. The development, which started during Jokowi's presidency, is estimated to require a budget of Rp466 trillion. "Just one step back. But to be 100 percent on track, of course not. The funds are limited," Dody said. "We're all looking for money. If anyone wants to contribute to the development, we would be happy to accept it."

In a joint meeting with Commission V of the House of Representatives in Senayan on Tuesday, December 3, 2024, Dody also proposed an additional budget of Rp14.87 trillion to support the development of IKN. In his presentation, Dody explained that Rp9.900 billion of the budget will be used by the Directorate General of Highways for road construction within the core area of the Government Center (KIPP), toll road construction, and the doubling of the Balang Bentang Pendek Bridge. Meanwhile, Rp4,969.63 billion will be used by the Directorate General of Spatial Planning to complete the construction of the drinking water supply system (SPAM), sanitation, government office buildings, the Ministry of Defense Office, the Police Office, and the National Intelligence Agency Office.

The continuity of the development has been questioned as President Prabowo Subianto did not mention IKN in his State of the Nation address after his inauguration at the MPR building on Sunday, October 20, 2024. However, Minister of Maritime Affairs and Investment Coordinating Airlangga Hartarto said several times that President Prabowo Subianto will continue the development of the mega project, but with adjustments.

According to Airlangga, the government should not only pay attention to the IKN project. There are other strategic national projects in various regions that must also be considered to strengthen food self-sufficiency and energy self-sufficiency and improve the quality of life of the people.

In addition, the development of IKN must take into account the budget allocation. Airlangga also said Prabowo had stressed the importance of avoiding inefficient development. "So I say that this (IKN) will continue, but of course, it will be adjusted, especially in terms of budgeting. We need to know how much budget will be allocated to continue the projects in IKN," said Airlangga at the Ministry of Public Works, on Wednesday, October 23, 2024. "The rest we will monitor."

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