D

ecades of uncontrolled urbanization has led to mounting problems in cities across the country as urban populations keep spreading, resulting in people being unable to reap the benefits of urbanization.

Indonesia’s urbanization is among the fastest in the world, increasing the size of its urban land from 2000 to 2010 by more than 1,100 square kilometers — second in size only to China.

In terms of population, Indonesia’s urban population grew 4.4 percent per year between 1960 and 2013, compared with 3.6 percent in China and 3 percent in India.

By 2025, Indonesia is expected to have 68 percent of its population living in cities, compared to the 52 percent in 2013.

However, investment in urban infrastructure has not kept up with the rapid rate of urbanization, resulting in traffic congestion, pollution and risk to disasters such as flooding.

The economy grew an average of 5.8 percent in the mid to late 2000s, yet infrastructure stock grew by only 3 percent. In contrast, the amount China invested in infrastructure over the past decade was equal to 10 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP).

“Think about it this way. People fly for 3.5 hours from Jakarta to Bangkok. But many people in Jakarta spend 3.5 hours or more sitting in traffic today because of a lack of proper infrastructure,” World Bank Indonesia country director Rodrigo Chaves said during a discussion in South Jakarta.

Congestion in Jakarta alone costs US$3 billion every year, according to the World Bank.

“That’s about the cost of completing a massive rapid transit line. So every year, residents of Jakarta lose economic value of more than the cost of building an MRT,” said Chaves.

As Indonesian cities are not spending enough on infrastructure, the country has not been able to fully tap the benefit of urbanization like other countries that have gained higher economic growth through formal employment and better labor productivity that result from urbanization.

From 1970 to 2012, every 1 percent growth in urban population correlated with a per capita GDP increase of 13 percent for India, 10 percent for China and 7 percent for Thailand.

Indonesia, however, has gained only 4 percent per capita GDP growth for every 1 percent of urban population growth.

“With more investments in critical infrastructure that deliver clean water, sanitation, efficient public transport and affordable housing, in a sustainable way to cities, Indonesia can accelerate growth and lift millions out of poverty,” Chaves said.

Currently, many communities are vulnerable to poverty due to insufficient investment in infrastructure.

Only 48 percent of households currently have access to safe water, compared to 50 percent more than a decade ago. Sewerage coverage exists in only 11 cities. Furthermore, only 2 percent of city residents have access to centralized sanitation systems.

The Public Works and Public Housing Ministry recently laid out an ambitious plan to provide basic services to all urbanites to ensure that cities in Indonesia were livable.