L

ate budget disbursement has pushed back the construction of a giant sea wall off the coast of Jakarta, which was expected to be finished in April 2018.

Phase A of the project, which is also known as the National Capital Integrated Coastal Development (NCICD), was inaugurated in 2014 as a joint project involving the central government, the Jakarta administration and private companies. The NCICD’s Phase A was claimed to be a way to mitigate land subsidence in the capital with the 62 kilometers of sea walls installed along the coast from the border of Tangerang regency, Banten, to Bekasi regency, West Java.

The project also includes the extension and reinforcement of 57 km of embankments along 16 city rivers that flow into Jakarta Bay.

However, almost two years after the inauguration, the initial work on the sea wall alone is only 4 percent complete.

“We started it in November 2015 because we had to wait for the project’s budget, which was disbursed in the 2015 allocation,” said T. Iskandar, head of Ciliwung-Cisadane Flood Control Office (BBWSCC), which is part of the Public Works and Public Housing Ministry. “Moreover, we needed some time to sharpen our sea wall designs.”

Aside from those things, he added, the office had no obstacles in the way of carrying out the project.

Expected to work on the 62-km sea embankment, the BBWSCC will only finish strengthening the 4.5-km section of dike in the first stage, which was set to be carried out from November 2015 to April 2018, Iskandar said.

However, just 4 percent of a project has been carried out with 118 meters of pipes in total having been installed on the coast.

“In Kali Baru, we have installed pipes in 60 spots with lengths of about 78 meters. Meanwhile, in Muara Baru, there are already 34 spots with pipe lengths of 40 meters,” said Iskandar on Wednesday. “We are optimistic that we will finish the 4.5-km embankment by April 2018.”

Meanwhile, regarding the overall work of the NCICD’s Phase A, the BBWSCC said it cannot predict when the work will be finished as it involves developers that are unable to provide certainty about the funding period, Iskandar said.

Requiring about Rp 900 billion (US$68.4 million), the overall work of Phase A has been guaranteed funding by the central government, the city administration and private companies that reportedly received permits for the construction of 17 islets in Jakarta Bay.

“There is no written agreement, but it was agreed verbally that 25 percent of the overall project will be funded by both the central government and the Jakarta administration. Meanwhile, the remaining 75 percent will be supported by the developers along the coast,” Iskandar added.

Previously, the Jakarta administration, which has the responsibility to install the 57 km of embankments along 16 rivers and three sections of the coast, claimed that it was optimistic about strengthening a 3.74-km dike by the end of this year.