Prabowo to Build 700 Km Sea Wall from Banten to East Java to Guard Java’s Rice Fields from Rising Sea Levels

SEAToday.com, Jakarta - The President's Envoy for Climate and Energy, Hashim Sujono Djojohadikusumo, revealed that President Prabowo Subianto has decided to implement a plan to build a massive sea wall stretching 700 km from Banten to East Java.

"The Prabowo government has decided to carry out several programs, one of which is the construction of a giant sea wall stretching 700 km from Banten to East Java," Hashim said at the "ESG Sustainable Forum 2025" event, which was monitored online in Jakarta on Friday.

According to Hashim, the project aims to protect rice fields along the northern coast of Java Island from the threat of rising sea levels, which affects fishermen and coastal communities.

"This is all caused by climate change," he said.

Hashim explained that the plan for the massive sea wall project had actually been studied since 1994 during the New Order era, when the threat of rising sea levels was first recognized. However, the project has not been realized until now.

He estimated that the construction of the sea wall will take about 10 to 20 years to complete.

He further noted that building food estates in Kalimantan or Papua would not be effective if millions of hectares of rice fields in Java Island were submerged due to rising sea levels. Therefore, he called on the public to support this project.

"It’s never too late to commit to protecting millions of hectares of the most productive and fertile rice fields on the northern coast of Java," he added.

Previously, President Prabowo had instructed his team to review the construction of the massive sea wall from Jakarta to Cirebon as part of the 2025 National Strategic Program (PSN).

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto, explained that the directive was based on an internal meeting led by President Prabowo regarding the development of Special Economic Zones (KEK) and the completion of the PSN for 2024–2025.

In this project, the giant sea wall from Jakarta to Cirebon will be connected to the flood and tidal control wall in Tambaklorok, Semarang, Central Java, which has already been constructed.

The President also directed that the project be prepared with a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) financing scheme.

According to Airlangga, the construction of the giant sea wall is included in the 2025 PSN list as part of efforts to strengthen national energy and food security.

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