"Ultimate in Diversity"
To better understand our new slogan, here are a few
facts about one of the most diverse and fascinating
countries in the world: Indonesia...
Indonesia stretches 5,100 km along the equator (one-sixth
of the circumference of the earth!) between Australia
and Asia and is bordered by the Pacific and Indian Oceans
at the Equator. The country is divided into three different
time zones. Flying from Banda Aceh on the Western tip
of Sumatra Island to Jayapura in Eastern Papua would
take approximately six hours, a time comparable to a
flight from Tokyo to Hawaii…
Indonesian landscapes are among the most diverse in
the world. Visitors will not only see some spectacular
beaches and coral reefs but also discover waterfalls,
paddy fields, rice terraces, Southeast Asian largest
lakes and even snowy mountains tops in Irian Jaya.
Indonesia is the world’s largest archipelago with
over 17,000 islands (no one knows the exact figure!).
However, only 9,000 are inhabited.
Indonesia is the fourth most populated country in the
world with a population of 238 million inhabitants (2005)
living on an area of 1,904,443 km2. The most important
islands in terms of population are (figures for 2003):
| Java |
127.7 million |
132,186 km2 |
| Sumatra |
46.4 million |
473,481 km2 |
| Sulawesi |
15.7 million |
189,216 km2 |
Kalimantan
(Borneo) |
11.9 million |
539,460 km2 |
| Bali |
3.3 million |
5,561 km2 |
Papua
(ex Irian-Jaya) |
2.3 million |
421,981 km2 |
| Maluku |
1.3 million |
42,853 km2 |
Indonesia is divided into 32 provinces, 268 regencies
and 73 metropolitan areas.
Indonesia has 10 cities with at least one million inhabitants
and another eight cities with more than 500,000 inhabitants
(figures for 2005). The largest are:
| 1- Jakarta |
8.54 million |
| 2- Surabaya |
2.37 million |
| 3- Medan |
1.75 million |
| 4- Bandung |
1.70 million |
| 5- Makassar |
1.32 million |
Indonesia has over 491 ethnic groups, who speak 567
different languages or dialects. The largest ethnic
group are the Javanese with approximately 100 million
people, and is itself subdivided in various sub-groups.
Large other ethnic groups adding to the richness of
Indonesian history and culture include the Sundanese,
Madurese, Malay, Minahasa, Chinese, Melanesian, Bugis,
Minang, Batak and Toraja. Dayaks from Kalimantan (Borneo),
Asmat, Dani in Papua, Kubu in Sumatra and Badui around
Jakarta belong to the most well-known Indonesian minority
groups.
Eighty-seven per cent of the Indonesian population follows
the principles of Islam. But the Indonesian constitution
guarantees the freedom of worship and recognises not
only Islam but also Christians (11%), Buddhism (1%)
and Hinduism (less than 1%) as official State religions
whose major holidays are celebrated by everyone and
are on the official calendar.
Indonesia’s economy is booming again after years
of stagnation following the Asian financial crisis of
1997-98. Indonesia’s GDP grew by over 4 per cent
in 2003 and gained strength in 2004 with a rate of 5
per cent. This year, the GDP is further expected to
grow by 5.5 per cent with inflation hovering around
6 per cent.
