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Indonesia's President Joko Widodo, commonly known as Jokowi, has spoken up against allegations that the country's lifting of the sea sand export ban is aimed to pave the way for Singapore's investment in Indonesia's new capital project in East Kalimantan, Tempo reported.
Lifting of 20-year-old ban
Just last month, Indonesia lifted a 20-year-old ban on sea sand exports, causing some concerns among environmentalists.
Indonesia first banned sea sand exports in 2003 and eventually land sand in 2007, citing concerns about illegal shipments and fear of environmental degradation.
Before the ban, Indonesia was Singapore's major supplier of sea sand, exporting an average of 53 tonnes of sea sand per year between 1997 and 2002.
According to Reuters, the two countries had a dispute over the ban in 2007, claiming that the ban was used to pressure the Singapore government in unrelated negotiations.
Important material for reclamation work
Sand is an important raw material for Singapore's reclamation project.
Every year, the city-state grows larger by a fraction thanks to land reclamation efforts, successfully expanding from 581.5 km² in 1960 to 725.7km² in 2019.
According to a 2019 United Nations Environment Programme's sand sustainability report, Singapore has been the world's largest importer of sand for the last 20 years.
Reclamation work continues in the Western and Eastern parts of Singapore.
Singapore is currently planning and designing the third phase of its Tuas Port mega-project, with reclamation work to be done by the mid-2030s.
Another land reclamation project to extend the Changi Bay shoreline had also commenced and is expected to take place over a period of 10 years.
Selling sea sand to Singapore
In lifting the 20-year-old ban on sea sand exports through Government Regulation No. 26 of 2023, "the export of sand will be permitted subject to the fulfilment of domestic demand for sea sand for the purpose of domestic reclamation and infrastructure development".
Various Indonesian media such as CNN Indonesia, CNBC Indonesia, and Kompas maintained that the country will be selling sea sand to Singapore to "make Singapore's land area wider".
There was also speculation that the lifting of the ban was aimed to pave the way for Singapore to invest in Indonesia's new capital project Nusantara.
However, Indonesia's Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Sakti Wahyu Trenggono dismissed the allegations.
Wahyu also said that the export of sea sand would not only be made to Singapore, but to any country that receives recommendations from the review team, as long as the condition that domestic needs for the sand have already been met.
Jokowi criticised
Meanwhile, Jokowi has been subject to criticism from various quarters after it was announced that the sea sand ban will be lifted.
Former Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (KKP) Susi Pudjiastuti is in favour of continuing the ban for environmental reasons.
CNBC Indonesia also reported that Minister of Trade Zulkifli Hasan said that he was not informed about the lifting of the ban.
"I really didn't know [anything]. In my perception, this sand belongs to Indonesia," Hasan said on June 7.
Denies allegation
On Wednesday (Jun. 14), Jokowi addressed the allegations, specifically that it is aimed to pave the way for Singapore to invest in the Nusantara project in Kalimantan.
“There is no relation [between Singapore’s investment and sea sand export],” Jokowi said, as quoted by Tempo.
The sea sand stipulated in the policy resulted from sedimentation, he emphasised.
According to Jokowi, sedimentation sand disrupts shipping and the life of coral reefs, making it necessary to regulate and clean up sedimentation results in the sea.
Jokowi also maintained that the government has been drafting the policy for a long time.
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Top image via Anthony Choren/Unsplash and Presiden Jokowi Widodo/Facebook.