Indonesia committed to building Giant Sea Wall on N. Java Coast

Tanggul Laut Pantai Utara along Java Island or Indonesia’s would-be Giant Sea Wall must be realized immediately to protect the northern coast of Java Island from the threat of tidal flooding and extreme climate change, the country’s president has said.

 

Jakarta (Indonesia Window) – Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto has confirmed his government’s commitment to immediately begin construction of a national strategic project, a Giant Sea Wall along Java Island’s North Coast, or locally known as Tanggul Laut Pantai Utara on the island.

President Prabowo called the sea wall project one of the most vital infrastructures that must be realized immediately to protect the northern coast of Java Island from the threat of tidal flooding and extreme climate change, the Indonesian Cabinet Secretariat said in a written statement quoted by Indonesia Window on Sunday (June 15).

“I want to emphasize. I want to underline one of the infrastructure projects that is very strategic, very vital for us. This is a mega project. What we must implement is the Giant Sea Wall, the North Java Coast Sea Wall,” President Prabowo said in his keynote speech at the 2025 International Infrastructure Conference at the Jakarta Convention Center (JCC), Thursday, June 12, 2025.

The president pointed out that this project has actually been in the planning since 1995. The project of the sea wall (Tanggul Laut Pantai Utara) is planned to stretch 500 kilometers from Banten province to Gresik in East Java province, with an estimated total construction cost of 80 billion US dollars.

The initial construction phase is expected to be carried out in the Jakarta Bay area which is estimated to take eight to 10 years.

“If it reaches East Java, it might take 20 years, 15 to 20 years. There is no problem. There is an old saying: a 1000 km journey begins with one step. We will start that soon,” the head of state said.

To oversee this major project, President Prabowo will also soon form a special institution called the North Java Coast Seawall Authority Board.

The president also emphasized the importance of synergy between the central and regional governments, especially the Jakarta provincial government, in supporting funding for the initial project in Jakarta Bay.

“Specifically for Jakarta Bay, it is likely to be 8-10 billion dollars. If it is 8-10 billion dollars, I think we are capable of it ourselves. I have met the Governor of Jakarta (the capital city) and I have sent an envoy. I said, Jakarta must contribute, the Central Government contributes.

“So if it is eight billion dollars, let’s say eight years, that means one billion dollars, one year. The Minister of Finance already looked tense seeing it. Calm down, Ma’am, Jakarta is contributing. So Jakarta is contributing half, the central government is contributing half,” the president noted.

Likewise, President Prabowo expressed his openness to international cooperation. However, he emphasized that the project will still begin with national capability.

“We are open to companies from China, from Japan, from Korea, from Europe, from the Middle East that want to participate in, please do so. But we are not waiting. We will use our own capability,” he stated.

 

Reporting by Indonesia Window