September 24, 2025 | 07:09 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Prabowo Subianto spoke about his plan to build a giant sea wall to combat climate change during the 80th United Nations General Assembly in New York. In his speech on Tuesday, September 23, 2025, he highlighted that Indonesia, as the world's largest archipelagic nation, is directly threatened by rising sea levels.
In his address, Prabowo initially detailed how Indonesia has been directly affected by climate change. As the world's largest archipelagic nation, the President noted that the threat of rising sea levels poses a significant danger to the country.
"The sea level on the north coast of our capital city is increasing by five centimeters every year," Prabowo stated in his speech, which was monitored online.
According to him, this threat will only worsen if no decisive action is taken. He then shared his administration's ambitious plan to build a giant sea wall to mitigate this issue. Facing this imminent threat, Prabowo asserted that constructing a massive sea wall spanning 480 kilometers is the only viable option. "It may take 20 years, but we have no other choice. We have to start now," he declared.
The President stressed that solutions to climate change require direct action, not just slogans. He affirmed Indonesia's commitment to the 2015 Paris Agreement and stated the country's goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2060, expressing optimism that the target could be met even earlier.
The giant sea wall concept was a key part of Prabowo's 2024 presidential campaign and was also an infrastructure program during the administration of former President Joko Widodo.
Despite government support, the project has faced public reservations. A survey by Destructive Fishing Watch (DFW) Indonesia, conducted online from March 20 to April 25, 2025, found that 56.2% of 105 respondents were concerned the wall would harm the environment and disrupt the livelihoods of fishermen.
DFW Indonesia researcher Luthfian Haekal stated that while the wall could act as a protective barrier, it also poses a significant ecological threat.
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