Transmigration in Indonesia

Location?

A Cluster of 17,508 islands in Southeast Asia between Australia in the south and China and Japan in the North

Why is it necessary? 

Indonesia is the fourth most populous country in the world but has a very uneven distribution of its population. It's population grows at a rate of just over 1% per year. 60% if 246.8 million population live on central island Java and there is a risk of it being overpopulated. The western Java population density is 1k to 2k per km squared, whereas across the island chain less than 100 per km is common. 

What is transmigration? 

In 1969, in an attempt to redistribute the population, the Indonesian government embarked on an ambitious project called transmigration. The involved encouraging people to move form densely populated islands such as Java to the more sparsely populated outer islands, such as West Papua. 

Financed by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, transmigration continued through the 1980s but recent financial difficulties and changes in government have led to the policy being scaled down. 

What incentives were offered? 

• 2 to 4 hectares of farmland on freshly cleared forest
• A basic wooden house
• A basic supply of food to cover the period before the first harvest
• Basic farming tools
• Seed supplies for the first harvest
• Fertilisers and Pesticides for the first three years
• Free transportation to the sites
• The provision of infrastructure for the community including roads, schools and clinics. 

How many people moved?

• Around 5000 were moved in and around 1975 to the plantations on Sumatra. Between 1975 and 1984 almost 2.5 million people were moved.
• In 2006, approximately 20,000 families took advantage of the programme
• By 2010, about 250,000 families wanted to move but the government was only able to sponsor 10,000 families. 2000 families were moved following the eruption of mount Merapi. 
• In total, the policy has resulted in the resettlement of approx 20 million people. 

Positives:

• Population pressures in the major cities such as Jakarta would have been much worse if transmigration had not occurred.
• Many participants have experienced an improvement in their quality of life and standard of life
• 3 out of 5 sponsored projects became thriving villages with a broad range commercial, social and cultural activities. 
• Settlers incomes higher than expected and above the poverty level
• Up to 95% of settlers described themselves as very satisfied with their current situation
• Provided a new start for families displaced after the eruption of Mount Merapi in 2010
• Settlers ranked lower fees and access to education for their children as most important benefit. 

Negatives:

Social

• Confrontations have arisen between the transmigrants and the indigenous population who have resented the arrival of newcomers leading to violent clashes and hundreds of deaths. 
• Traditional land rights were often ignored to favour the new settlers
• Indigenous population has also been displaced to make way for oil palm development 
• Transmigrants lacked the basic knowledge to farm their land effectively 

Economic

• Resettlement was extremely expensive, costing $7000 per family
• The policy has simply redistributed poverty throughout the islands rather than eliminating it on the main islands. 
• Due to poor skills and transmigrants being placed on unsuitable land, such as peat forests and tidal swamps, they have not been economically self sufficient. 
• Settlements poorly planned with, with few roads, shops and services such as water, sanitation and electricity. 

Environmental 

• Huge deforestation has occurred with over 50 million hectares of rainforest lost 
• Over cultivation and poor agricultural practice has lead to an increase in soil erosion and loss of soil fertility. 

Political 

• Policy seen by many as a way for the government to tighten national security and assert more control on the indigenous people of the outlying islands