REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA - The Indonesian Spatial Planning Experts Union (IAP) stated that half the cities in Indonesia were considered least livable that need to revamp their infrastructures.

"Nowadays, almost 50 percent of the cities are not suitable for living, and this state has not changed much during the last five years," Head Bernardus R Djonoputro said on Thursday.

Djonoputro stated that the global trend began in 2008, when more people started living in cities than in villages. However, Indonesians had only in 2010 started following the trend. 

The delay in migration was due to certain issues that had developed in cities, such as poverty, lack of housing, and poor quality of infrastructure. However, cities in the Asia-Pacific region, including Indonesia, are those that have high growth rate in the world.

"Housing becomes a central issue because it is fundamental in how we can establish self-sufficient and livable cities," Djonoputro pointed out.

The global cities were also prone to climate changes and natural disasters that require innovative multidimensional management, he said. Meanwhile, Deputy Minister of Public Works Hermanto Dardak said that urban growth in Indonesia has increased significantly.

"Compared to the 1970s, the population has grown more than twofold and urban population six times," the deputy minister said.

The growing population has brought pressure and problems to many cities in Indonesia. One of the problems was the poor infrastructure in water management that often caused flood in the cities, and the lack of reliable transportation modes that could not overcome traffic jam in major cities.

"Making a living in the cities is not comfortable and sustainable," he said.

The deputy minister expected that cities should be managed well and efficiently to accommodate its residents and to boost its productivity. Dardak mentioned some most livable cities in the world, such as Melbourne (Australia), Vancouver (Canada), and Copenhagen (Denmark).

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