Nusantara Capital City (IKN), September 19, 2025 – PWYP Indonesia, along with a consortium aimed at improving land and environmental governance in the IKN area, held a hearing with the Deputy for Environment and Natural Resources (LHSDA) of the Nusantara Capital City Authority (OIKN). The consortium comprises several national and local East Kalimantan civil society organizations (CSOs), including the Epistema Institute, Kawal Borneo Community Foundation (KBCF), Bumi, and Prakarsa Borneo (PB).
This activity is part of a series of hearings conducted by CSOs with the OIKN to open advocacy spaces, particularly regarding mining issues within the IKN region. Since the House of Representatives (DPR) approved the relocation of the national capital through Law No. 3 of 2022, IKN has been planned as an area developed under the ‘forest city’ urban concept. However, on the ground, this development is marked by serious challenges, including deforestation, environmental degradation, land tenure overlaps, and the presence of illegal mining.
Through its LHSDA Deputy, the OIKN has targeted 163,800 hectares, or 65% of the total 252,000-hectare IKN area, as a protected zone. As a management step, the OIKN has adopted a policy to impose a moratorium on the issuance and/or extension of mining permits and is encouraging the restoration of former mining lands. Currently, there are 42 recorded permits, including IUP permits for coal, non-metallic minerals, rocks, as well as one special IUP and one Work Agreement for Coal Mining Exploitation (PKP2B). Meanwhile, the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK) records 2,415 mining pits in IKN, ranging in size.
During the hearing, the consortium emphasized the importance of collaboration between relevant ministries and agencies, as well as community participation around the mines, to strengthen monitoring and compliance with existing permits. PWYP Indonesia specifically stressed the crucial need to strengthen law enforcement against mining activities in the IKN region. This includes clarity on the OIKN’s mandate in overseeing the mining sector, strengthening cross-ministerial/agency complaint channels for public use, and ensuring legal follow-up against companies that fail to conduct post-mining reclamation. The consortium also emphasized the need for policy synchronization to ensure that law enforcement in the land-use sector is complementary rather than overlapping.
In addition to discussing mining problems in the IKN region, the consortium pushed for four other strategic agendas to support efforts to improve land and environmental governance in the IKN area. These four agendas include:
Advocating for the recognition of community-managed areas within and around IKN.
Ensuring harmonized spatial planning policies between IKN and East Kalimantan Province.
Strengthening community-based forest management schemes in IKN’s protected areas and its surrounding regions.
Supporting community-based land rehabilitation, including advocating for rehabilitation targets and the application of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) principles in the process.
The OIKN, through the LHSDA Deputy, expressed openness to inputs from civil society, including regarding the need for more comprehensive and participatory field data. Follow-up notes primarily emphasized the importance of contributions from local communities and those living around mines to ensure that land and environmental management in the IKN area aligns with the vision of sustainable and climate-resilient development.
Writer: Muhammad Adzkia Farirahman
Reviewer: Meliana Lumbantoruan