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Habitat International

The continuity and change in mega-urbanization in Indonesia: A survey of Jakarta–Bandung Region (JBR) development

Abstract

The physical development of the Jakarta Metropolitan Area (JMA) and the Bandung Metropolitan Area (BMA) is characterized by the formation of an urban belt from Jakarta to Bandung of about 200   km, reflecting a growing mega-urban region marked by a mixture of rural and urban activities and blurred rural-urban distinction. This process is continuing at an even with faster rate than in the period from the 1980s to the mid-1990s. In fact, the JMA and the BMA are both experiencing transformation from single-core to multi-core cities. In the past three decades the development of socioeconomic activities has resulted in several environmental problems. The JBR also faces problems of uncontrolled land conversion. New town developments have reinforced spatial segregation by life style and income status while industrial estates are also growing in the region. There is a tendency of local governments in the JBR to try to exploit local resources excessively. The JBR is a functional region that should be managed as an inseparable region through an integrated spatial development plan. Institutional development is now critical to ensure the sustainability of the JBR.

Introduction

The contemporary urbanization in Asia indicates the blurring distinction between 'rural' and 'urban' (Brennan, 1999, Hugo, 2006, Jones, 2002, Jones, 2006, McGee, 1995). Urban development in several Asian countries is characterized by physical growth which extends beyond metropolitan and city boundaries, and radiates from city centers in all directions (Hugo, 2006, Jones et al., 1999, McGee and Robinson, 1995). The development is also marked by many different economic activities and land uses, including industrial estates, large-scale housing projects, and tourist resorts, interspersed with existing agricultural activities (McGee & Robinson, 1995), which is referred to as the phenomenon of mega-urbanization (Firman, 2003, Hugo, 2006, Jones, 2002, Jones, 2006, Lin, 1994, McGee, 1995). The policies of many Asian countries to control the sprawl and expansion of metropolitan areas and to slow rural to urban migration have been simply without a great success if not total failures.

A study of extended metropolitan region of Jakarta (Jabotabek) and Bandung (BMA) in the early 1990s (Dharmapatni and Firman, 1995, Firman and Dharmapatni, 1995) concluded that Jabotabek and BMA are physically being integrated, shaping a belt of an urban region from Jakarta to Bandung (Fig. 1), reflecting the formation of mega-urban. This urban belt is characterized by a mixture of socioeconomic activities, including agriculture, industries, trade and residential, which in turn has created very intense rural–urban linkages, blurred the rural–urban distinction and made very distinct settlement patterns (Firman & Dharmapatni, 1995: 181–3).

There are several factors contributing to the process of mega-urbanization in Jakarta–Bandung Region (JBR), most notably large-scale housing and new town, infrastructure and industrial estate development. Development of this region has greatly enhanced agglomeration economies. As in many Asian countries, recent urbanization and urban development in Indonesia is greatly triggered by domestic and direct foreign investment, notably in the sector of industry and services (see Firman, 2002), and more recently by infrastructure development. Those economic activities tend to locate in large cities, notably Jakarta, Surabaya, Bandung and Medan, due to 'urbanization economies', including the availability of infrastructure and utilities, such as water supply, electricity; seaports and airports; and concentration of skilled labor and markets.

Against the above background, the present study will examine the continuity and change in the process of mega-urban formation in JBR, which is the largest concentration of urban population and economic activities in Indonesia and one of the largest in Southeast Asia. There are several factors that might have affected the region (JBR) during the last decade, notably the economic crisis at the end of 1990s followed by political reformation and the new policy of regional autonomy and fiscal decentralization in Indonesia which has been started since 2001. This study is not particularly intended to enter the debate over whether the mega-urbanization in Southeast Asia, such as Indonesia, resembles that in western countries (see Dick and Rimmer, 1998, McGee, 2005), but rather aimed to examine the process of mega-urbanization within the context of Indonesia's recent socioeconomic development and political conditions. The study argues that first of all mega-urbanization in Southeast Asia needs to be understood in the contexts of the broader socioeconomic, political situation, as well as the physical condition of the places and societies where the region exists, not on whether the urbanization in developing countries resemble or differ from western countries as such. As Shatkin (2007: 2) correctly maintains that there is a need to shift the focus in study of urbanization at global level from 'world city model' towards a more grounded examination of the interaction between global and local actors and institutions in a particular setting. The present study intends to make contribution in that perspective.

There are two occurrences which might affect the recent urbanization pattern in Indonesia. The first is the economic crisis at the end of 1990s and early 2000s, whereas the second is the new policy on regional autonomy and fiscal decentralization. The recent economic crises have had a big impact on urbanization and urban development in Southeast Asia (see Chatterjee, 1998), most notably Indonesia. Economic growth had seemed to significantly contribute to urban development in Indonesia from the late 1970s until the mid-1990s, but the economic crises made it uncertain. As the economic activities in JBR slowed down, the number urban unemployed increased rapidly during the crises, while a substantial number of workers in Jakarta Metropolitan Area (JMA) and Bandung Metropolitan Area (BMA) have involved in many marginal jobs, such as itinerant food traders, just for survival reasons.

Indonesia's new regional autonomy and fiscal decentralization reform could potentially change pattern of urban and regional development (see Firman, 2003). The question to address in this study is to what extent have the regional autonomy and fiscal decentralization reforms affected the development of Jakarta–Bandung Region (JBR)? Analyzing impacts of the decentralization reform on the development of the region in Indonesia could be a premature task, as the implementation of this reform since 2001 is still underway, while 7 years (2001–2008) is too short a time to examine the impacts. Moreover, identifying the impacts of this reform will also be a formidable task, as the reform has broad socioeconomic, culture and political dimensions. However, given the process of such reform as described above, it is possible to analyze the potential impacts of the reform on urban and regional development, including the Jakarta–Bandung Region (JBR).

The new regional autonomy and fiscal decentralization policy implies that urban and regional development in Indonesia, including in the Jakarta–Bandung Region (JBR), have become local authority affairs, meaning that it has to be planned and implemented according to local needs by local government and communities. In the past urban and regional development in Indonesia had been strictly under the control and direction of central government through presidential grant allocation (Inpres) and ministerial programs.

The Jakarta–Bandung Region (JBR) basically comprises the two largest concentration of urban population and urban economic activities in Indonesia, namely Jakarta Metropolitan Area (JMA) and Bandung Metropolitan Area (BMA). JMA, is also now called "Jabodetabekjur", an acronym which stands for Jakarta–Bogor–Depok–Tangerang–Bekasi–Cianjur. This region which is located in the northern area of West Java (Fig. 1), comprises of 12 administrative units at different levels: First, the Jakarta Special Region (DKI Jakarta) having provincial government status; second, eight municipalities (Kota) and districts (Kabupaten), namely the Municipalities of Bogor, Depok, Tangerang and Bekasi, and the Districts of Bogor, Tangerang, Bekasi, and Cianjur. Although the JMA comprises of only 0.33% of the national land area, it accommodates as much as 12% of Indonesia's total population, and produces nearly one-fourth of Indonesia's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at present (Rustiadi, 2007). Meanwhile, the Bandung Metropolitan Area (BMA) comprises one municipality and district, namely the Municipality of Bandung and the District of Bandung. In total, the Jakarta–Bandung Region (JBR) covers an area of more than 12 275   km2, whereas Jakarta City and Bandung City occupy a relatively a small area, that is, only 164 and 81   km2, respectively.

The total population of the JBR was about 32 million in 2004, while the population of Jakarta City as the core of the region was about 8.5 million, which was 26.5% of the total population, whereas Bandung City had a population of about 2 million. The population density in the region is highly uneven, in which the municipalities (Kota) have much higher population density than the districts (Kabupaten). Jakarta City is the densest with 45.6 persons per km2, whereas District (Kabupaten) Cianjur is the lowest with only 0.59 persons per km2.

The primacy index, i.e. the proportion of urban population in Jakarta Metropolitan Area (JMA) relative to the four largest metropolitan regions in Indonesia, including Jakarta, Surabaya, Bandung and Medan was 0.56 in 1980, 0.58 in 1990, and 0.57 in 2000 (see Firman, 1997). This clearly reflects the Indonesia's substantial urban population concentration in the JMA. In fact, the JMA's share of the national urban population reached 22.5 in 1980, 23.6% in 1990, and 21.2% in 2000.

While population plays a very important role in development of Jakarta–Bandung Region (JBR), commuting is also evident. Millions people commute daily between Jakarta City and the adjacent areas, including the Kabupatens (District) and Kotas (Municipality) of Bogor, Tangerang, Bekasi, by bus, private cars and trains. According to Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) (see Hidayat, 2007) by 2002 alone there were more than 3 million commuters between Jakarta and its surrounding areas, including 1.10 million between Tangerang and Jakarta; 1.14 million between Bekasi and Jakarta; and nearly 1.00 million between Bogor and Jakarta. This figure does not include the commuters for farther areas, such as Cianjur, Serang, Rangkasbitung, and Sukabumi. Likewise a substantial number of people commute between Bandung City and its surrounding areas.

The remainder of this article will be divided into five parts. The next part will discuss the mega-urbanization process in Asia to provide a theoretical context and argument for this study; The following part will analyze impacts of the economic crisis on the JBR development; There follows an examination of the current socioeconomic and physical development in the region, including urban population and employment, new town and industrial estate development, and land conversion. The next part will discuss the impacts of new Indonesia's decentralization policy on the development of the region. A final section will conclude the discussion.

Section snippets

Mega-urbanization in Asia

Globalization of the economy, that is, the process of deepening and expansion of the global market for commodities, finance and services, greatly supported by the fast development of transportation and communication technology and latter triggered by the trade liberalization (Cho, 1997, Cho, 1999), has greatly affected the pattern of urban development in the world. Moreover, the establishment of the WTO (World Trade Organization) in 1995, which essentially removed trade barriers, has been an

Economic crises

Southeast Asian countries hit by serious economic crises, which began in Thailand in July 1997, and quickly spread to Asian countries, including Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, and, most notably Indonesia which experienced the worst impacts, including the flow away of foreign capital; loss of investor confidence; and a serious drop its currency's value. The economic crises in Indonesia also involved the monetary mismanagement and the offshore bad debts of a number of Indonesia's private

Urban population

The urban population of Jakarta–Bandung Region (JBR) reached more than 24 million in 2000, which is about 28% of the total urban population in Indonesia, at rate of growth about 3.5% over the period 1990–2000 (Table 1). The proportion of urban population in Jakarta over the total urban population in the region significantly decreased from 48% in 1990 to 34.7% in 2000.

It can also be noted that rate of urban population growth in the urban centers of the region, notably in Jakarta and Bandung City

Early reform and decentralization era

Under the pressures of justice and democratization issues, Indonesia is Parliament passed Law 22/1999 and 25/1999 concerning the regional autonomy and fiscal decentralization in May 1999. These two pieces of legislation are basically aimed primarily at curbing separatist sentiment in the outlying provinces of Indonesia in order to avoid a break up Indonesia into several small tiny countries, and to stop the exploitation of central government of local governments. Moreover, the legislations are

Concluding remarks

The Jakarta–Bandung Region (JBR) which consists of The Jakarta Metropolitan Area (JMA) and the Bandung Metropolitan Area (BMA) play very important role in the national economy. Its physical development has formed an urban belt form Jakarta City to Bandung City of about 200 km, reflecting a formation of mega-urban region characterized by a mixture of rural and urban activities and a blurred rural–urban distinction in the Jakarta–Bandung Region (JBR). Population growth in the urban centers,

Acknowledgement

The author would like to thank an international anonymous referee for valuable suggestions. He would also like to thank Novita Panjaitan for analyzing some of the data, and Dan Cohen for editing an earlier version of this article. The research, on which this article is based, is partially funded by the Institute of Research, Institute of Technology, Bandung. However, he alone is responsible for any shortcomings and mistakes.

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