{"id":4103,"date":"2016-11-18T11:22:59","date_gmt":"2016-11-18T16:22:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/ioc\/?page_id=4103"},"modified":"2025-06-04T10:45:05","modified_gmt":"2025-06-04T14:45:05","slug":"jakarta-blog-post","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/ioc\/events\/urban-seminar-series-main-page\/jakarta-blog-post\/","title":{"rendered":"Jakarta: Making a Megacity a Smart City"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Michael<\/a>
Michael Sianipar, left, shares his experience working for the City of Jakarta. Paul McManus, right, looks on.
<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/em><\/p>\n

Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, is one of the largest urban centers in the world, with an estimated population of nearly 10 million. On Thursday, September 15th, Boston University (BU) students had the opportunity to learn about some of the city’s biggest challenges.\u00a0The BU Initiative on Cities and the Pardee School of Global Studies<\/a> welcomed Michael Sianipar<\/strong>, a staff member to Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama (also known as Governor Ahok), to campus for Jakarta: Making a Megacity a Smart City<\/em>. Moderated by Paul McManus<\/strong><\/a>, Master Lecturer in Strategy and Innovation at the BU Questrom School of Business<\/a>, the discussion shed light on how Jakarta is changing and the opportunities ahead.<\/p>\n

Creative Destruction for the Greater Good<\/strong><\/p>\n

Elected as Lieutenant Governor of Jakarta in 2012 and named Acting Governor in 2014, Governor Ahok leads an institution historically known for rampant corruption and complex bureaucracy, prompting his team to commit to a policy of creative destruction. \u201cIn order to create something, you have to destroy what existed<\/em>,\u201d said Sianipar. \u201cYou have to demolish the buildings and dig out the foundations<\/em>.\u201d In a system plagued by wasteful spending, mismanagement, and inaccessibility, every function of city government needed to be reexamined. The new administration\u2019s candor and transparency, combined with a willingness to buck past trends, have been critical in changing the political environment.<\/p>\n

The scale of corruption in Jakarta\u2019s public services was, by all accounts, monumental. Yet Sianipar remains optimistic, explaining his belief in the fundamental goodness of people working in government. \u201cMost people have a conscience<\/em>,\u201d he said, elaborating in his overriding belief that most people do not want to work for a corrupt organization, nor engage in questionable activities. But when people work in an environment that tolerates corruption and encourages bribery and cheating through poor pay and poor working conditions, they may not have any other choice.<\/p>\n

Governor Ahok\u2019s administration thus set out to eradicate corruption through means that often appeared counterintuitive. Wages were raised for employees who had previously relied on bribes. The city stopped spending on certain public services where funds had been mismanaged, and discovered that reduced spending did not result in a lower quality of life.<\/p>\n

For a city with 70,000 civil servant employees and over 200,000 contract employees, these efforts were massive. Still, the city government believes in the potential of its employees and is committed to turning the ship around, even if it means tearing down the instruments of past administrations. Bureaucratic reform remains the number one priority for Governor Ahok\u2019s team, explained Sianipar. \u201cYes the rest is important \u2013 infrastructure, healthcare, education \u2013 but most important is to identify who is capable for the job\u2026 We don\u2019t want a bureaucracy based on connections but one [based on] merits. If you have the skills, you\u2019ll get the job.\u201d<\/em> The city is implementing improved incentives, attracting more young talent, and developing inclusive policies, all of which contribute to a spirit of optimism for the future.<\/p>\n

Incremental Improvement in Pursuit of Self-Sustaining Change<\/strong><\/p>\n

City governments in Jakarta and elsewhere can often be perceived as complex and slow. Sianipar acknowledged that the pace of progress can be disheartening at times, but momentum has started to build: \u201cIt is like moving a big rock one centimeter a day, but when you look back after five years, you realize that you moved quite far.\u201d<\/em> It is an approach that necessitates taking the long view.<\/p>\n

The administration also adopted practices from the private sector, setting goals and timelines for projects to measure progress and track small victories. Unafraid of public backlash, Governor Ahok has been willing to make short-term sacrifices in the interest of long-term progress. Sianipar described a decision to dramatically cut funding for cleaning the city\u2019s rivers downstream. Instead of investing in short-term fixes to the problem, the city spent less and focused on key choke points upstream. Despite an initially negative reaction from the media, over several months, the rivers proved to be the cleanest they had been in years, and the city saved tens of millions of dollars.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Human and Technology Systems Enable a Smart City<\/strong><\/p>\n

One of Sianipar\u2019s chief areas of focus is establishing Jakarta as a \u201cSmart City\u201d by adopting new technologies and innovating government processes. But simply accessing more information through tools like street sensors isn\u2019t enough. He explained that being a Smart City wasn\u2019t only about having the data available, but also about being able to understand and leverage it effectively. For example, Sianipar emphasized the importance of utilizing technology to establish new channels for exchanging and communicating ideas. While most policies and programs ultimately originate from the Governor\u2019s desk, Smart City technology has empowered lower-level city employees and members of the public, giving them a platform for their voices to be heard \u2014a concept Sianipar refers to as a \u201cbottom-up Smart City program<\/em>.\u201d Ideas can reach levels of government that were previously inaccessible, increasing participation and improving public engagement.<\/p>\n

Sianipar frequently emphasized the human infrastructure that must undergird a Smart City. \u201cI think that people don\u2019t believe in the technology<\/em>,\u201d he said, \u201cthey believe in the person behind the technology<\/em>.\u201d This highlighted an underlying belief that technology complements human capacity and conscientiousness. Having the right government workers and the right leaders in place to manage that technology is critical to its success. Challenges still exist; increased transparency does put more pressure on civil servants, Sianipar admits, and the digital divide among members of the public remains. But overall, he remains optimistic that Smart City technology will help Jakarta become a better, more responsible, and transparent city.<\/p>\n

Looking to the Future<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Sianipar<\/a>
Sianipar alongside Boston University students.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The importance of engaging the next generation of public leaders emerged as a key theme throughout Sianipar\u2019s discussion. The government\u2019s reputation as complicated and corrupt has made recruiting young talent challenging, especially as the public sector competes with startups and the booming technology industry for engineers and developers. Students in the audience, many of whom were members of the Indonesian Student Association of Boston University<\/a>, asked how they could help Jakarta succeed both in Indonesia and here in the United States, a sign that enthusiasm for public service persists. As an organization committed to helping foster future city leaders, we at the Initiative on Cities were delighted to see that passion in action.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, is one of the largest urban centers in the world, with an estimated population of nearly 10 million. On Thursday, September 15th, Boston University (BU) students had the opportunity to learn about some of the city’s biggest challenges.\u00a0The BU Initiative on Cities and the Pardee School of Global Studies welcomed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8981,"featured_media":0,"parent":1579,"menu_order":5,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/ioc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4103"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/ioc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/ioc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/ioc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8981"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/ioc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4103"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/ioc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4103\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22092,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/ioc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4103\/revisions\/22092"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/ioc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1579"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/ioc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4103"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}