NUSANTARA — President Prabowo Subianto visited the site of Indonesia's planned new capital, Nusantara, in East Kalimantan in January 2026 and signed a presidential regulation designating it as the country's "political capital" by 2028. Construction of the city, located in the forest of Indonesia's Borneo island about a two-hour drive from the neighboring city of Balikpapan, began in 2022 after the government announced the plan in 2019.

Nusantara was a signature project of former President Joko Widodo. Prabowo assumed office in October 2024 and made his first visit to the site in January 2026. The project has a budget of more than $30 billion, but its timeline has been delayed by logistical issues, funding challenges, and a presidential election. State funding for 2026 was cut by half compared with 2025.

The core government district is nearly complete, and the city is planned to cover nearly 1,000 square miles — about three times the size of New York City. The core is home to about 10,000 residents, including roughly 1,000 civil servants, while the broader metro area includes around 150,000 people comprising construction workers and residents of long-established villages. Plans call for moving 4,100 more civil servants to Nusantara in 2026. "Don't worry. It will be continued," said Basuki Hadimuljono, head of the Nusantara Capital City Authority. Hadimuljono said construction of the legislative and judicial buildings will be completed by next year.

Nusantara is planned to be powered by renewable energy and run by advanced technology. A newly built dam and water treatment plant provide most of the city with filtered drinking water. However, essential infrastructure such as schools, housing for married civil servants, malls, and entertainment venues are still missing.

The project has drawn opposition from environmental groups and local residents. Construction has caused mangrove deforestation around Balikpapan Bay, according to WALHI East Kalimantan. "The most impacted will be what we call silent victims — mangrove ecosystem and then proboscis monkey and owa Kalimantan," said Fathur Roziqin Fen, executive director of WALHI East Kalimantan. The owa Kalimantan is an endangered primate living in the forests of the province. "It's hard to believe that the future of [Nusantara] will be inclusive," he added. Fen also said: "It's hard to believe the dream that the construction will be a smart city, forest city and green city."

As construction expands, surrounding villages are set to be absorbed into Nusantara, and city officials have told residents they must sell their land to the project. A concrete wall built along the Sepaku River as part of dam and flood mitigation has cut off the village of Sepaku Lama — home to Indigenous people of the Balik tribe for generations — from using river water for bathing and washing clothes. Many families in the village now use rainwater or purchase water tanks delivered to their homes. One resident, Pandi, shared documents detailing local struggles with the construction. "Maybe the government can compensate me for the plants or even the house. But my memories, my history, can the government replace that?" Pandi said.