President Prabowo Subianto has announced plans to build a 700-kilometre giant sea wall throughout the north coast of Java island. Estimated to cost Rp700 trillion, the project aims to protect rice fields and boost coastal development.
The government of President Prabowo Subianto has decided to build a giant sea wall stretching 700 kilometres from Banten to East Java. Quoted from the Instagram account @dw.media, the giant sea wall construction project will require an estimated fund of Rp700 trillion.
The decision to build the giant wall was conveyed by the Presidential Envoy for Climate and Energy, Hashim Sujono Djojohadikusumo, at the ESG Sustainable Forum 2025 event in Jakarta on Friday, the 31st of January.
“The Prabowo government has decided to implement several programmes, including the construction of a giant sea wall stretching 700 kilometres from Banten to East Java,” said Djojohadikusumo.
Djojohadikusumo also explained that this project had actually been designed 31 years ago, precisely back in the year 1994 during the government of then-President Soeharto. Djojohadikusumo also added that this project is estimated to take approximately 10 to 20 years. The purpose of building this giant sea wall is to protect the rice fields located on the north coast of Java Island from rising sea levels. In addition, this project is also designed to develop coastal areas into economic and residential centres.
“From Banten to East Java, this programme will probably take quite a long time. Maybe 10 to 20 years, but it must be started immediately to protect millions of hectares of rice fields located on the North Coast of Java Island,” Djojohadikusumo explained in a separate statement on Monday, the 3rd of February.
Meanwhile, an urban planning observer from Trisakti University, Yayat Supriatna, remarked that the construction of this giant sea wall would be very difficult due to budgetary concerns. In fact, the budget for infrastructure development at the Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing (Kementerian Pekerjaan Umum dan Perumahan Rakyat or PUPR) has recently been cut by 70%.
“Indeed, in his campaign promise [during the presidential election], the President [Prabowo Subianto] had a plan to build a sea wall. However, seeing the reality of budget efficiency cuts, especially in the Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing, it feels quite difficult to be able to build a sea wall,” Supriatna remarked on Tuesday, the 4th of February.
Supriatna suggested that the construction of the sea wall be accompanied by the development of other infrastructure, such as toll roads or connections between industrial areas. Henceforth, the government can offer the sea wall project to potential investors.
“So, for example, if it [the giant sea wall] is linked to that [infrastructure] development, it’s okay, so there is a business element. However, if there is no business element, it is indeed quite difficult [to build the sea wall],” Supriatna added.