I spent my entire career, in Singapore and Jakarta. In Jakarta, my office always either in SCBD areas of Singapore, or Jakarta's Sudirman/Thamrin. In these locations, with hyper-centralized economy, the traffic, the cost, the competition (eventhough the location looks good) — I realized the truth: Indonesia's future cannot afford to be centralized. One of the reason is cost of living. The high cost of living driving up many things, while the cost of living in smaller Java cities like Kediri can be up to 75% lower than in Jakarta. just had a lunch for 3 persons in Kediri, cost 150k IDR (less than 10 USD), while my son had his lunch for 140k IDR/person in Bekasi. Some job cant be done remotely, the real opportunity lies in building businesses, especially digital-first ones, in my hometown and other regional centers. The data proves it's the right move: * Explosive Digital Growth: The digital economy in Indonesia's Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities is forecasted to grow up to five times faster than in metropolitan areas like Jakarta by 2030. This is where the next wave of Indonesian consumers and SMEs is emerging. * Higher Talent Value: Businesses significantly reduce their operating expenses (rent, lower regional minimum wages) while offering employees a higher quality of life. This creates happier, more productive teams and drastically improves talent retention. * Equitable Wealth Distribution: Decentralization is the key to unlocking true national growth. When capital, high-quality jobs, and career opportunities move out of Jakarta, it reduces regional inequality, strengthens local GDP, and gives a more diverse population the chance to participate in Indonesia’s growth story. While I grew up in rural area (Malang, Kediri, Bandung) and like many others who migrated to Jakarta for opportunity and following my dad's assignment (he was in the army), my dream isn't just to return for a quiet retirement. My dream is to return and build. I want to leverage Jakarta-honed skills to launch a business right here, where the costs are low, the talent is hungry, and the community is eager for new opportunities. Imagine the collective power if everyone who left for the capital returned not just as a resident, but as a founder, a leader, and a job creator. This is how we distribute the wealth and make the entire Indonesian archipelago stronger. I know some of my contacts now already make their names and become someone important, rich and powerful (all 3) Let's make your hometown the next economic hub! #IndonesiaMaju #Decentralization #HometownHero #DigitalEconomy #StartupLife
Di kediri nasi pecel pincuk masih 5000
In my opinion it’s going to be so hard until the infrastructure issue (education system, healthcare, public transport, etc.) in rural area is fixed. What makes Jakarta more attractive is not just about higher salary, but also the whole ecosystem that supports within—I believe you will prefer to send your kids to international school/private school in Jakarta rather than in Kediri. So does when it comes to healthcare and stuff. The easiness of living in Jakarta will not replaceable and this must be the first thing that’s prioritized to make decentralized system happen.
This hits home, Pak! Daging banget. Your point about Indonesia’s future not being centralized really resonates, especially when you connect it with digital growth and equitable talent distribution. What excites me is how technology and data-driven platforms (like Salesforce and others) can actually enable that decentralization, helping businesses in Tier 2–3 cities scale fast without needing Jakarta level overhead. Love seeing leaders like you champion this kind of shift pak. Hope to cross paths and exchange thoughts on how we can accelerate this transformation further. 💡
That's noble Yos 🙂❤️ Maybe the first step toward that is by having WFA (Work From Anywhere) policy still in place. Cause however, the employees will chose to stay at their home (town) as priority if they can. The effect of this is to have Jakarta income and hometown spending (wealth and economic distribution). We need to admit that Jakarta is still the central of business and it's hard to "leave" Jakarta, at least from business perspective. But operation or business support perspective, sure it can be done outside Jakarta (as much as possible and depends on context of course). Before transitioning all the business aspect out of Jakarta
Setuju pak. Saya juga berpikir harusnya tiap kota di tiap pulau itu bisa dikembangkan jadi hub-hub development baru. Basis pengembangannya didasarkan pada potensi yang dimiliki masing-masing kota. Kalau kita mampir ke kota-kota ini sebenarnya banyak yang bisa dikembangkan. Tapi biasanya pemda setempat nggak tahu gimana cara mengolahnya. Mungkin peran kedepan yang bisa diambil adalah pemerintah pusat memberikan pendampingan supaya kota-kota ini bisa tertrigger dan paham potensi yang dimilikinya; dan pemda setempat bisa berkolaborasi dengan masyarakat untuk mendevelop potensinya secara bottom up.
The economy in Tier 2 cities will definitely become a new prospect for business catalysts in the future. From a business perspective, we are now also expanding into these second tier cities, even though our products are positioned as premium. Market growth, consumer spending, lower living costs, and the improvement of technological infrastructure will eventually drive the emergence of a new economic model in the future.
Living in rural Java is cheap, but virtually no money making opportunities, especially for a working class citizen. The ideal, in my opinion, is to make a lot of money first, then go for retiring in the rural Java.
Following dad's assignment took me to the Middle East for 23 years, and counting... I did a 2 year stint in Jakarta when I quickly realized, Jakarta is not for me. Now back doing rotating work in the Middle East, we are currently in the planning stages to start holistic farming and husbandry in northern Bali.
Interesting Pak, its not easy i tried several initiatives in Cepu, Blora still figure it out what works. Nothing impossible. May be we can start from exploring unique winning commodities each area and exhange to other cities. … and can not work alone .. collective initiative really matters. Hope there is a national roadmap for local commodities and support to enter Modern Market
Heavy Equipment & Automotive Professional
1wEarn in Singapore, then spend in Kediri, the best, Pak 👍