T

he West Java administration is planning to transform a slum in Muara Gembong in Bekasi regency with the aim of boosting the local economy.

Governor Ridwan Kamil said the coastal area that bordered the Java Sea was poorly developed.

“Fishermen can’t go out to sea because of coastal erosion. Many roads there are damaged and the residents are poor,” he said at his office in Bandung on Tuesday.

He will conduct the improvement through the “rejuvenated village” scheme, which will involve many agencies under the West Java administration. The project will start next year and is expected to be completed within a year.

“The Public Works and Housing Agency will take care of the roads, the Fisheries and Maritime Affairs Agency will manage coastal erosion, and the Environment and Forestry Agency will manage mangrove development. [We will also] make the canal there a tourist attraction and implement the low-interest financing scheme to boost the economy,” he said referring to the recently launched loan program.

Ridwan claimed that Muara Gembong had caught his attention during his campaign before taking office. He said living conditions there were far from modern standards.

“We aim to transform [the village]. Currently, it looks like the residents live in the pre-independence era,” he said, noting that floods regularly hit the area on the back of coastal erosion.