Overpopulation in Indonesia

Overpopulation in Indonesia

Q: To what extent does Indonesia have a population problem? How successful have the efforts been to overcome the problem in that country?

It is safe to say that the idea that Indonesia is suffering from overpopulation is not contemporary; however the task of logically quantifying just how much Indonesia is suffering becomes increasingly complicated. On one hand, extremely urbanised and population dense areas - such as the island of Java - are experiencing increased levels of pollution, insufficient infrastructure, food scarcity and higher levels of poverty. On the other hand, Indonesia as a whole, despite having the fourth largest population in the world, has a population density which ranks it only 64th in the world compared to other countries (U.S Global Health Policy 2012). Moreover, recent statistics about population growth show that Indonesia's growth rate has remained relatively stable, at approximately 1% between 2007-11, compared with Australia's growth rate of 2.1% in 2009 to 1.4% in 2011 (The World Bank 2012a). From this, it can be inferred that the source of Indonesia's population problems are due to the crowding of people in certain cities and islands, as opposed to an overall or average measurement. In other words, political and social measures - for example, centralisation of economic activity - along with urbanisation and modernisation, which drastically exacerbate population density, are the essence of what's causing this overpopulation problem in certain areas of the Indonesian archipelago. A rapidly growing economy can also act to exacerbate already-dense areas due to the expansion of the middle class attracting large numbers of migrants (Indonesia: Bursting at the Seams 2011). It would be false to say that the Indonesian government has been oblivious to all this, however, as efforts such as transmigration programs have been employed to control the population since 1905 - albeit with questionable success (MacAndrews 1978, p. 461). More contemporary measures include actions from the BKKBN (National Family Planning Coordination Board), including widespread family education programs and improved access to contraception (Setiawan 2012). Despite this, the high population densities existing in such islands as Java and Sumatra, and such cities as Jakarta, Surabaya, Bandung and Medan, suggest that a more comprehensive solution is needed. So what, exactly, are these problems that affect the average Indonesian living in densely populated areas? According to the documentary 'Indonesia: Bursting at the Seams' (2011), the answer is a combination of these 4 concepts; insufficient infrastructure, food scarcity, poverty levels and pollution. Jakarta is the most obvious example, and by far the most populous city in Indonesia with a current population of 9.1 million people (Central Intelligence Agency, 2012). Transportation has become a huge issue - not just in regards to pollution - with the gridlock in Indonesia costing the country 1.4 billion dollars annually in lost productivity (Indonesia: Bursting at the Seams 2011). Additionally, as pointed out by Stefan Koeberle of World Bank Indonesia, Indonesia is the only country of its size to not have a large public transportation system; exposing the imminent lack of urban infrastructure to deal with Jakarta's large population (Indonesia: Bursting at the Seams 2011). Adding weight to this is the influx of migrants, which are attracted to Jakarta due to the ever expanding and wealthier middle class spawning from a booming economy, and seeking economic benefit due to the apparent opportunity. This tends to amplify the slum-like areas, where the migrants have poor quality of life and even desire to return to their home village, however struggle to afford the journey (Indonesia: Bursting at the Seams 2011). However, it's not just the migrants, nor the residents of places like Jakarta, which are affected by the overpopulation. Agricultural islands, such as the eastern island of Flores, also suffer from overpopulation in terms of the absence of labour and increased demand for rice production (Indonesia: Bursting at the Seams 2011). Although Indonesia is the 3rd largest rice producer in the world, rice has been imported in recent years to keep up with the demand, increasing the price of the crop. According to Stefan Koeberle from World Bank Indonesia, even a small increase in the price of rice, or any food, greatly affects the poorer population as the average Indonesian family spends 70% of their income on food (Indonesia: Bursting at the Seams 2011). Thus, higher food prices will make life harder for Indonesia's poorer class and ultimately contribute to poverty. In addition to this, younger generations are leaving islands such as Flores to pursue careers in big cities, like Jakarta, Bandung and Surabaya (Indonesia: Bursting at the Seams 2011). Overall, the increasing demand for food along with reduced labour, and need for the importation of rice, shows how fathomable a food crisis can be for Indonesia's future. In mainly agricultural islands such as Flores, there's not much evidence to suggest that pollution is affecting the overall quality of the environment, however the same cannot be said for Java. Pollution is another area which cannot be ignored as issues such as air pollution and river pollution around Indonesia's major cities are growing. Of course, without a metro, or something comparable to one, it is not surprising that the emissions from motor-vehicles have reached dangerous levels in congested areas of Java's major cities (Cribb 1990, p. 1124). In addition, rivers such as the Ciliwung and Cipinang - which flow through Jakarta - are loaded with tons of chemical waste each day, so much so that it has reportedly help reduce the mosquito population (Cribb 1990, p. 1124). Current statistics also show that air-borne particles - such as those from motor-vehicles - far exceed the WHO standards, and that this is already causing major health problems in places such as Jakarta (Otto 2012). Again, urbanisation in this context can be seen as the aggravator; as the large influx of people to these areas due to the centralisation of economic activities, and the associated industrialisation that comes with it, causes air and river pollution which damages the health of the population. After outlining