Guest
Thank you for watching. I will be glad to your comments. If you liked this video please like and subscribe As the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Rishi Sunak, faces embarrassment while making significant cuts to the long-debated HS2 high-speed rail project aimed at connecting London to the northwest, Professor Tony Travers of the London School of Economics summed up the sentiment shared by many, describing it as a “tragic case study in how not to plan and deliver public infrastructure.“ This embarrassment becomes even more pronounced when just days ago, Indonesia proudly inaugurated its inaugural high-speed rail line, reducing the 142km journey from Jakarta to Bandung from three hours to a mere 40 minutes. The project, developed in collaboration with China under the Belt and Road Initiative, had a price tag of US$7.3 billion. Since Indonesia did not have sufficient funds at the time, the China Development Bank provided loan support for 75% of the total cost. What is remarkable is that China has completed the track laying of the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway in just five years since full construction began in 2018. As of September 7, 2023, Indonesia announced that the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway has officially begun operation, and sincerely invites Chinese representatives to take a test ride. This successful case fully demonstrates China’s strength and experience in the field of infrastructure construction. At the same time, Indonesia greatly appreciates and trusts China's infrastructure construction capabilities. Under these circumstances, if Indonesia takes the initiative to invite China to participate in the construction of the new capital, it may be able to get a better guarantee. So why did Indonesia suddenly decide to move its capital? The fact is, Jakarta is becoming unfit to be a capital city. Although Jakarta has been an important city in Indonesia for centuries, it is now facing increasing urban development problems, which are mainly rooted in a series of challenges caused by rapid population growth. As far as I know, the Indonesian city of Jakarta has an area of only 661 square kilometers, but tens of millions of people live here, which makes traffic congestion one of the most prominent problems in the city. Although the distance from a city close to Jakarta to the city is only 40 kilometers, it usually takes at least three to four hours of driving due to traffic congestion. In addition, the environmental pollution problem in Jakarta city is also a serious challenge. In Jakarta, only 4% of the entire city's wastewater has been treated, and the rest is discharged into the ground and rivers in large quantities, causing rivers to be filled with garbage and groundwater to be contaminated and unfit for drinking. Currently, more than 60% of residents do not have access to clean fresh water and can only rely on digging deeper wells to obtain relatively clean groundwater. However, excessive extraction of groundwater has led to insufficient groundwater resources, causing serious problems such as seawater intrusion and ground subsidence. The entire city is in a state of far as I know, more than half of the city of Jakarta in Indonesia is already below sea level. The northern area has even sunk to 2.5 meters below sea level, with a sinking rate of 25 centimeters per year. Against this background, Indonesia had to build large-scale seawalls to resist seawater erosion. But according to expert predictions, by around 2050, 95% of northern Jakarta will be submerged in sea water. In addition, earthquakes occur frequently near Jakarta, and there are a total of 45 active volcanoes distributed on the island of Java. Strong crustal activities often trigger volcanic eruptions and tsunamis, resulting in casualties and hundreds of thousands of people homeless. Under the influence of these various factors, Jakarta is no longer suitable to continue to serve as the capital of Indonesia. Therefore, it is understandable that the Indonesian government made the decision to relocate the capital. In addition, moving to a new capital is of great significance to a country, but it is also an arduous task that requires a large amount of funds and related technical support. Indonesia plans to move to a new capital on a large scale, requiring at least US$34 billion in first-phase construction investment, which is a huge pressure on finances. However, Indonesia itself does not have sufficient financial resources to undertake this huge investment. Fortunately, China has been one of Indonesia's largest investors for many years. to be continued in the video.....
