Indonesia\'s urban population will continue to grow. This urbanization is an opportunity to improve the welfare of all Indonesians, if managed properly.
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Indonesia\'s urban population will continue to grow. This urbanization is an opportunity to improve the welfare of all Indonesians, if managed properly. Urbanization almost occurs in all developed countries and they can benefit from it because they can well manage the growing population of the city.
The latest World Bank report, "Time to ACT! Realizing Indonesia’s Urban Potential”, launched on Thursday estimates that in 2045, 100 years after Indonesia\'s independence, 70 percent of the population or 220 million people will live in cities.
At present, 151 million people, or nearly 57 percent, of the population live in large, medium and small cities. The report is important not only because urbanization is inevitable and has already taken place but must be able to provide the greatest benefit for the improvement of the quality of life for all members of the community.
The growth of cities and urbanization can also improve people\'s lives and reduce poverty. People are interested in moving from villages to cities because cities provide opportunities for a better life. Cities provide a space for people with different talents to meet, exchange knowledge and ideas, generate innovation, facilitate meeting between job seekers and the business world and open access to a wider market of goods and services — and their impact will drive productivity.
To get the greatest benefits from urbanization, cities must meet the needs of their citizens to be comfortable to live in and attract new talent needed for the city to continue to grow.
These needs are physical and non-physical. Among the non-physical needs are the tolerant attitudes of city residents toward the diversity, security and inclusive policies of the city government. Urban planner Charles Landry shows examples of cities where the tolerance of citizens and their governments toward diversity can encourage innovation and create wealth for their citizens.
Physical needs include equitable access in all basic needs, such as clean water, sanitation and healthy urban areas, no slums, housing and other public needs. Connectivity through public transportation and communication facilities are vital so that citizens can easily go to work, get public services and go to other regions.
The three World Bank recommendations from the three ACTs (access, connectivity and targets) are targets to address disparities between regions and between groups. City governments are required to overcome three obstacles that are often faced, namely coordination within and between city governments, urban planning capacity and funding.
The city government needs to be creative in finding solutions to these challenges through inclusive policies that will encourage citizen participation. The central government can help develop cities because of their impact on national growth and equity.