Indonesia lies between latitudes
11°S and
6°N, and longitudes
95°E and
141°E. It consists of 17,508 islands, about 6,000 of which are inhabited.
These are scattered over both sides of the
equator. The largest are Java, Sumatra,
Borneo
(shared with Brunei and Malaysia), New Guinea (shared with Papua New
Guinea), and Sulawesi. Indonesia shares land borders with Malaysia on
Borneo, Papua New Guinea on the island of New Guinea, and East Timor on
the island of
Timor.
Indonesia shares maritime borders across narrow straits with Singapore,
Malaysia, the Philippines, and Palau to the north, and with Australia
to the south. The capital, Jakarta, is on Java and is the nation's
largest city, followed by Surabaya, Bandung, Medan, and Semarang.
At 1,919,440 square kilometers (741,050 sq mi), Indonesia is the world's
16th-largest country in terms of land area.
Its average population density is 134 people per square kilometer (347 per sq mi), 79th in the world,
although Java, the world's most populous island,
[ has a population density of 940 people per square kilometer (2,435 per sq mi). At 4,884 metres (16,024 ft),
Puncak Jaya in Papua is Indonesia's highest peak, and
Lake Toba
in Sumatra its largest lake, with an area of 1,145 square kilometers
(442 sq mi). The country's largest rivers are in Kalimantan, and include
the
Mahakam and
Barito; such rivers are communication and transport links between the island's river settlements.
Indonesia's location on the edges of the
Pacific,
Eurasian, and
Australian tectonic plates makes it the site of numerous
volcanoes and frequent earthquakes. Indonesia has at least 150 active volcanoes,
[92] including
Krakatoa and
Tambora, both famous for their devastating eruptions in the 19th century. The eruption of the Toba
supervolcano, approximately 70,000 years ago, was one of the largest eruptions ever, and a
global catastrophe. Recent disasters due to seismic activity include the
2004 tsunami that killed an estimated 167,736 in northern Sumatra,
[93] and the
Yogyakarta earthquake in 2006. However,
volcanic ash
is a major contributor to the high agricultural fertility that has
historically sustained the high population densities of Java and Bali.
[94]
Lying along the equator, Indonesia has a
tropical climate, with two distinct
monsoonal wet and
dry
seasons. Average annual rainfall in the lowlands varies from
1,780–3,175 millimeters (70–125 in), and up to 6,100 millimeters
(240 in) in mountainous regions. Mountainous areas—particularly in the
west coast of Sumatra, West Java, Kalimantan, Sulawesi, and
Papua—receive the highest rainfall. Humidity is generally high,
averaging about 80%. Temperatures vary little throughout the year; the
average daily temperature range of Jakarta is 26–30 °C (79–86 °F).
[95]
Biota and environment
Indonesia's size, tropical climate, and archipelagic geography,
support the world's second highest level of biodiversity (after Brazil),
[96] and its flora and fauna is a mixture of Asian and
Australasian species.
[97] The islands of the
Sunda Shelf
(Sumatra, Java, Borneo, and Bali) were once linked to the Asian
mainland, and have a wealth of Asian fauna. Large species such as the
tiger,
rhinoceros,
orangutan,
elephant, and
leopard,
were once abundant as far east as Bali, but numbers and distribution
have dwindled drastically. Forests cover approximately 60% of the
country.
[98]
In Sumatra and Kalimantan, these are predominantly of Asian species.
However, the forests of the smaller, and more densely populated Java,
have largely been removed for human habitation and agriculture.
Sulawesi, Nusa Tenggara, and Maluku—having been long separated from the
continental landmasses—have developed their own unique flora and fauna.
[99] Papua was part of the Australian landmass, and is home to a
unique fauna and flora closely related to that of Australia, including over 600 bird species.
[100]
Indonesia is second only to Australia in terms of total endemic
species, with 36% of its 1,531 species of bird and 39% of its 515
species of mammal being endemic.
[101]
Indonesia's 80,000 kilometers (50,000 mi) of coastline are surrounded
by tropical seas that contribute to the country's high level of
biodiversity. Indonesia has a range of sea and coastal
ecosystems, including beaches,
sand dunes,
estuaries,
mangroves,
coral reefs,
sea grass beds,
coastal mudflats, tidal flats, algal beds, and small island ecosystems.
[8] Indonesia is one of
Coral Triangle countries with the world's greatest diversity of coral reef fish with more than 1,650 species in eastern Indonesia only.
[102] The British naturalist,
Alfred Wallace, described a dividing line between the distribution and peace of Indonesia's Asian and Australasian species.
[103] Known as the
Wallace Line, it runs roughly north-south along the edge of the Sunda Shelf, between Kalimantan and Sulawesi, and along the deep
Lombok Strait, between
Lombok
and Bali. West of the line the flora and fauna are more Asian; moving
east from Lombok, they are increasingly Australian. In his 1869 book,
The Malay Archipelago, Wallace described numerous species unique to the area.
[104] The region of islands between his line and New Guinea is now termed
Wallacea.
[103]
Indonesia's high population and rapid industrialization present serious
environmental issues, which are often given a lower priority due to high poverty levels and weak, under-resourced governance.
[105] Issues include
large-scale deforestation (much of it
illegal) and related wildfires causing
heavy smog
over parts of western Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore;
over-exploitation of marine resources; and environmental problems
associated with rapid urbanization and
economic development, including air pollution,
traffic congestion, garbage management, and reliable water and
waste water services.
[105] Deforestation and the destruction of peatlands make Indonesia the world's third largest emitter of greenhouse gases.
[106] Habitat destruction threatens the survival of indigenous and endemic species, including 140 species of
mammals identified by the
World Conservation Union (IUCN) as
threatened, and 15 identified as critically endangered, including
Bali Starling,
[107] Sumatran Orangutan,
[108] and
Javan Rhinoceros.
[107]
Much of Indonesia's deforestation is caused by forest clearing for the
palm oil Industry, which has cleared 18 million hectares of forest for
palm oil expansion. Palm oil expansion requires land reallocation as
well as changes to the local and natural ecosystems. Palm oil expansion
can generate wealth for local communities if done right. If down wrong
it can degrade ecosystems and cause social conflicts.
[109]
Economy
Using
water buffalo to plough rice fields in Java. Agriculture had been the country's largest employer for centuries.
Indonesia has a
mixed economy in which both the private sector and government play significant roles.
[110] The country is the largest economy in Southeast Asia and a member of the
G-20 major economies.
[111] Indonesia's estimated
gross domestic product (nominal), as of 2010 was US$706.73 billion with estimated nominal
per capita GDP was US$3,015, and per capita GDP PPP was US$4,394 (
international dollars).
[112] June 2011: At
World Economic Forum
on East Asia, Indonesian president said Indonesia will be in the top
ten countries with the strongest economy within the next decade. The
Gross domestic product (GDP) is about $1 trillion
[3] and the debt ratio to the GDP is 26%.
[113] The
industry sector
is the economy's largest and accounts for 46.4% of GDP (2010), this is
followed by services (37.1%) and agriculture (16.5%). However, since
2010, the
service sector
has employed more people than other sectors, accounting for 48.9% of
the total labor force, this has been followed by agriculture (38.3%) and
industry (12.8%).
[114] Agriculture, however, had been the country's largest employer for centuries.
[115][116]
According to
World Trade Organization data, Indonesia was the 27th biggest exporting country in the world in 2010, moving up three places from a year before.
[117] Indonesia's main export markets (2009) are Japan (17.28%),
Singapore (11.29%),
the United States
(10.81%), and China (7.62%). The major suppliers of imports to
Indonesia are Singapore (24.96%), China (12.52%), and Japan (8.92%). In
2005, Indonesia ran a trade surplus with export revenues of US$83.64
billion and import expenditure of US$62.02 billion. The country has
extensive natural resources, including crude oil, natural gas, tin,
copper, and gold. Indonesia's major imports include machinery and
equipment, chemicals, fuels, and foodstuffs. And the country's major
export commodities include oil and gas, electrical appliances, plywood,
rubber, and textiles.
[118]
Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia and the country's largest commercial center.
In the 1960s, the economy deteriorated drastically as a result of
political instability, a young and inexperienced government, and
economic nationalism, which resulted in severe poverty and hunger. By
the time of Sukarno's downfall in the mid-1960s, the economy was in
chaos with 1,000% annual inflation, shrinking export revenues, crumbling
infrastructure, factories operating at minimal capacity, and negligible
investment. Following President Sukarno's downfall in the mid-1960s, the New Order administration brought
a degree of discipline to economic policy that quickly brought inflation down, stabilized the currency, rescheduled
foreign debt, and attracted foreign aid and investment. (See
Berkeley Mafia).
Indonesia was until recently Southeast Asia's only member of OPEC, and
the 1970s oil price raises provided an export revenue windfall that
contributed to sustained high economic growth rates, averaging over 7%
from 1968 to 1981.
[119] Following further reforms in the late 1980s,
[120] foreign investment flowed into Indonesia, particularly into the rapidly developing export-oriented
manufacturing sector, and from 1989 to 1997, the Indonesian economy grew by an average of over 7%.
[121][122]
Indonesia was the country hardest hit by the
Asian financial crisis of 1997–98. Against the US dollar, the
rupiah dropped from about Rp. 2,600 to a low point of 14,000, and the economy shrank by 13.7%.
[123] The Rupiah stabilised in the Rp. 8,000 to 10,000 range,
[124]
and a slow but significant economic recovery has ensued. However,
political instability, slow economic reform, and corruption slowed the
recovery.
[6][7] Transparency International, for example, has since ranked Indonesia below 100 in its
Corruption Perceptions Index.
[125][126]
Since 2007, however, with the improvement in banking sector and
domestic consumption, the national economic growth has been 6% annually
[127][128][129] and this helped the country weather the 2008–2009
global recession.
[130] The Indonesian economy performed strongly during the
Global Financial Crisis and in 2011, its GDP grew by 6.5 percent.
[131] The country regained its investment grade rating in late 2011 after losing it in the 1997.
[132] However, as of 2010, an estimated 13.3% of the population lived below the poverty line, and the unemployment rate was 7.1%.
[118]
Demographics
Balinese children. There are around 300 distinct native ethnicities in Indonesia.
According to the 2010 national census, the population of Indonesia is 237.6 million,
[133] with high population growth at 1.9%.
[134] 58% of the population lives on
Java,
[133] the world's most populous island.
[90] Despite a fairly effective
family planning
program that has been in place since the 1960s, population is expected
to grow to around 265 million by 2020 and 306 million by 2050.
[135]
There are around
300 distinct native ethnic groups in Indonesia, and
742 different languages and dialects.
[136][137] Most Indonesians are descended from
Austronesian-speaking
peoples whose languages can be traced to Proto-Austronesian (PAn),
which possibly originated in Taiwan. Another major grouping are
Melanesians, who inhabit eastern Indonesia.
[87][138] The largest ethnic group is the
Javanese, who comprise 42% of the population, and are politically and culturally dominant.
[139] The
Sundanese, ethnic
Malays, and
Madurese are the largest non-Javanese groups.
[140] A sense of Indonesian nationhood exists alongside strong regional identities.
[141] Society is largely harmonious, although social, religious and ethnic tensions have triggered horrendous violence.
[142][143][144] Chinese Indonesians are an influential ethnic minority comprising 3–4% of the population.
[145] Much of the country's privately owned commerce and wealth is Chinese-Indonesian-controlled,
[146][147] which has contributed to considerable resentment, and even anti-Chinese violence.
[148][149][150]
The
Istiqlal Mosque in Central Jakarta. Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim-majority nation.
The official national language is
Indonesian, a form of
Malay. It is based on the
prestige dialect of Malay, that of the
Johor-Riau Sultanate, which for centuries had been the
lingua franca
of the archipelago, standards of which are the official languages in
Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei. Indonesian is universally taught in
schools, consequently it is spoken by nearly every Indonesian. It is the
language of business, politics, national media, education, and
academia. It was promoted by Indonesian nationalists in the 1920s, and
declared the
official language under the name
Bahasa Indonesia on the proclamation of independence in 1945. Most Indonesians speak at least one of the
several hundred local languages and dialects, often as their
first language. Of these,
Javanese is the most widely spoken as the language of the largest ethnic group.
[118] On the other hand, Papua has over 270 indigenous
Papuan and
Austronesian languages,
[151] in a region of about 2.7 million people.
While religious freedom is stipulated in the Indonesian constitution,
[152] the government officially recognizes only
six religions:
Islam,
Protestantism,
Roman Catholicism,
Hinduism,
Buddhism, and
Confucianism.
[153]
Although it is not an Islamic state, Indonesia is the world's most
populous Muslim-majority nation, with 86.1% of Indonesians being Muslim
according to the 2000 census.
[118] On 21 May 2011 the Indonesian
Sunni-
Shia
Council (MUHSIN) was established. The council aims to hold gatherings,
dialogues and social activities. It was an answer to violence committed
in the name of religion.
[154]
The majority of Muslims in Indonesia are Sunni. 9% of the population
was Christian, 3% Hindu, and 2% Buddhist or other. Most Indonesian
Hindus are Balinese,
and most Buddhists in modern-day Indonesia are ethnic Chinese.
Though now minority religions, Hinduism and Buddhism remain defining influences in
Indonesian culture.
Islam was first adopted by Indonesians in northern Sumatra in the 13th
century, through the influence of traders, and became the country's
dominant religion by the 16th century.
Roman Catholicism was brought to Indonesia by early Portuguese colonialists and missionaries,
and the Protestant denominations are largely a result of Dutch
Calvinist and
Lutheran missionary efforts during the country's colonial period.
A large proportion of Indonesians—such as the Javanese
abangan, Balinese Hindus, and Dayak Christians—practice a less
orthodox,
syncretic form of their religion, which draws on local customs and beliefs.
Subud is a religion founded in Indonesia.
Culture
Indonesia has about 300 ethnic groups, each with cultural identities
developed over centuries, and influenced by Indian, Arabic, Chinese, and
European sources. Traditional Javanese and Balinese dances, for
example, contain aspects of Hindu culture and mythology, as do
wayang kulit (shadow puppet) performances. Textiles such as
batik,
ikat,
ulos and
songket are created across Indonesia in styles that vary by region. The most dominant influences on
Indonesian architecture have traditionally been
Indian; however, Chinese, Arab, and European architectural influences have been significant.
Sports in Indonesia are generally male-orientated and spectator sports are often associated with illegal gambling.
[165] The most popular sports are badminton and
football.
Indonesian players have won the
Thomas Cup
(the world team championship of men's badminton) thirteen of the
twenty-six times that it has been held since 1949, as well as numerous
Olympic medals since the sport gained full Olympic status in 1992. Its
women have won the
Uber Cup, the female equivalent of the Thomas Cup, twice, in
1994 and
1996.
Liga Indonesia is the country's premier football club league. Traditional sports include
sepak takraw, and bull racing in Madura. In areas with a history of tribal warfare, mock fighting contests are held, such as,
caci in
Flores, and
pasola in
Sumba.
Pencak Silat is an Indonesian martial art.
A selection of Indonesian food, including roasted fish,
nasi timbel (rice wrapped in banana leaf),
sambal, fried
tempeh and
tofu, and
sayur asem.
Indonesian cuisine varies by region and is based on Chinese, European, Middle Eastern, and Indian precedents. Rice is the main
staple food and is served with
side dishes of meat and vegetables. Spices (notably chili),
coconut milk, fish and chicken are fundamental ingredients.
Indonesian traditional music includes
gamelan and
keroncong. The
Indonesian film industry's popularity peaked in the 1980s and dominated cinemas in Indonesia,
although it declined significantly in the early 1990s. Between 2000 and 2005, the number of Indonesian films released each year has steadily increased.
The oldest evidence of writing in Indonesia is a series of
Sanskrit
inscriptions dated to the 5th century. Important figures in modern
Indonesian literature include: Dutch author Multatuli, who criticized
treatment of the Indonesians under Dutch colonial rule; Sumatrans
Muhammad Yamin and
Hamka, who were influential pre-independence nationalist writers and politicians;
[170] and proletarian writer
Pramoedya Ananta Toer, Indonesia's most famous novelist.
[171][172] Many of Indonesia's peoples have strongly rooted
oral traditions, which help to define and preserve their cultural identities.
Media
freedom in Indonesia increased considerably after the end of President
Suharto's rule, during which the now-defunct Ministry of Information
monitored and controlled domestic media, and restricted foreign media. The
TV market includes ten national commercial networks, and provincial networks that compete with public
TVRI.
Private radio stations carry their own news bulletins and foreign
broadcasters supply programs. At a reported 25 million users in 2008, Internet usage was estimated at 12.5% in September 2009.
More than 30 million cell phones are sold in Indonesia each year, and 27 percent of them are local brands.
