Java Barat Information

West Java (Jawa Barat)


West Java (Jawa Barat) is a province of Indonesia, located on the island of Java. The capital is Bandung.


History

History shows that West Java is the first province in Indonesia, referring to a statement from Staatblad number 378. In 1950, West Java province officially became a province of Indonesia.

On October 17, 2000, as part of nationwide political decentralization, Banten was separated from West Java and made into a new province


Geographic and Demographic

According to the 2005 Socio-Economic Survey, West Java's population is 39,960,869, making it the most populous province in Indonesia. It has an area of 34,736 km²; aside from the province of Jakarta, it is the most densely populated province in the country with an average of 1,150 people per km².

West Java borders Jakarta and Banten province to the west, and Central Java to the east.
To the north is Java Sea. To the south is the Indian Ocean. Unlike most other provinces in Indonesia which have their capitals in coastal area, the provincial capital Bandung is located in a mountainous area.

In addition to Indonesian, the official national language, the other widely-spoken language in the province is Sundanese. In some areas near the southern borders with Central Java, Javanese is also spoken. The ethnic language spoken in Cirebon and nearby areas (Majalengka, Indramayu, Sumber) is Cirebonese which is a mix between Sundanese and Javanese. Indonesian is widely spoken as a second language, except in some remote rural areas

Geographically, West Java Province is situated between 5 50'-7 50' South parallels and 104 48'-104 48 East meridians.
West Java Province is bordered of:
North side: Java Sea and Jakarta
West side: Banten Province and Hindia Ocean
South side: Hindia Ocean
East side: Central Java Province.
This strategic geographical condition is an advantage for West Java particularly in communication and transportation. Northern region is plain area, while southern part is a hilly area with beaches, and the middle region is mountainous area. But after the establishment of Banten Province, the size of West Java becomes 35,746.26 kilometer square.


GEOGRAPHICAL POSITION

Geographically, Province of West Java lies between
5°50¹ - 7°50¹ south latitude and 104°48¹ - 108°48¹ east longitude; which is bounded :
- on the north by Java Sea and Special Region of Jakarta
- on the east by Province of Central Java
- on the south by Indonesian Ocean and
- on the west by Sunda Strait
The strategic geographic position of Jawa Barat Province has many advantages for this regional prominently from transportation and comunication side. The north part of West Java is flat land area, while hilly area with a few shores in the south part and mountainous area in the central part.

Apart from that, Jawa Barat has fertile area which comes from volcanic deposit and possesses many rivers running across so that the most of land are suitable for agriculture. Therefore, this area is given as National Food Stock Area. This condition is also supported by tropical climate with high rainfall, that is average 190 mm and 14 rain days per month.


Topography

West Java has a characteristic as part of a volcanic belt, which spans from Sumatra Island to the northern part of Sulawesi Island. Its land can be divided into a region with steep mountains with altitude of more than 1,500 meter above the sea level in the South, moderate hill with elevation of 100 to 1,500 meters, and plain region in the north with elevation between 0 and 10 meters and river region.


Government

The enlarging of local second stage autonomous government of Jawa Barat Province become 28 regencies and municipalities, giving special impact in development in this region. With additional second stage local government, it is more easier to create development planning framefor improvement of social welfare of Jawa Barat.

At this time, Jawa Barat Province divided by 20 regencies and 6 municipalities, 543 districts, 521 special villages and 6.701 villages.

The number of government officials in this area are 559.173 peoples, of which level I, II, III and IV each : 56.847; 227.382; 261.530; and 13.414 respectively.

The number of civilian reserve personnel which have special duty to help government official to keep public order consist of : Public Guard about 761.765; Community Security are 77.030; Community defense are 38.644 with totally reach 877.439 peoples.

The number of member of DPRD of (general election) Jawa Barat Province as a result of Pemilu 1999 presented in this publication is 1.154 person from 20 parties. There was 48 parties joining the Pemilu 1999, the most majority of parlement members are from PDI-P (Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle) about 337 person ; Golkar (Functional Group) was 246 person and PKB (National Awakening Party) was 159 person.


West Java is subdivided into regencies (kabupaten), each with a local capital:

* Bogor Regency, Cibinong
* Sukabumi Regency, Pelabuhan Ratu
* Cianjur Regency, Cianjur
* Bandung Regency, Soreang
* Garut Regency, Garut
* Tasikmalaya Regency, Tasikmalaya
* Ciamis Regency, Ciamis
* Kuningan Regency, Kuningan
* Cirebon Regency, Sumber
* Majalengka Regency, Majalengka
* Sumedang Regency, Sumedang
* Indramayu Regency, Indramayu
* Subang Regency, Subang
* Purwakarta Regency, Purwakarta
* Karawang Regency, Karawang
* Bekasi Regency, Bekasi

List of cities (kota) in West Java:

* Bogor
* Sukabumi
* Bandung
* Cirebon
* Bekasi
* Depok
* Cimahi
* Tasikmalaya
* Banjar


Natural resource

Raw natural resources include chalk, several offshore oilfields in the Java Sea, and lumber. Most of the province is very fertile, with a mix of small farms and larger plantations. There are several hydropower dams, including Jatiluhur, Saguling, and Cirata


July earthquake

Recently, the region was shocked by 7.2 on Richter-scale earthquake that followed by small-scale tsunami. The earthquake was followed by 2 big aftershocks with both measured up to 5.9 and 6.1 on Richter scale respectively.


People

Of the 17,000 islands that make up the archipelago of the Republic of Indonesia, Java has historically been considered the heartland. Where Java has led-culturally, economically and politically down through the centuries, other regions have followed. On Java, still the most densely populated island of Indonesia, there are five Provinces. West Java is the largest, with the greatest population, and, some would claim, with the most pride.

West Java Province is located at part of western Java Island. The enchanting of Sunda land stretches from Sunda Strait in the west to the borders of Central Java in the east. The locals' people know West Java Province as the Land of Sunda. The region is primarily mountainous, with rich green valleys hugging lofty volcanic peaks, many of which surround the capital of West Java province. The history of West Java is a story of trade, spices, and the rise and fall of powerful kingdoms. In the late 1500's the region was ruled from mighty Cirebon, which still survives as a sultanate today, although a shadow of its former glory. West Java was of the first contact points in Indonesia for Indian traders and their cultural influences, and it was here that the Dutch and British first set foot in the archipelago.

This province has its own unique culture and language, both called Sundanese that is also used to call its people. The ancient kingdoms of Tarumanegara, Pajajaran, Banten and Cirebon would make interesting studies for the student of archaeology. Cirebon is located on the border between West and Central Java, having a mixed culture originating from the ancient Cirebon and Banten kingdoms, resulting in similar customs and dialects of the two people, although Banten is located at the extreme western part of the province.

West Java province its self, is formed based on the Constitution number 11/1950 on the establishment of West Java. With the issuance of Constitution number 23/2000 on Banten Province, West Java Governor Assisting Territory I Banten was inaugurated as Banten Province with its territories comprising Serang Regency, Pandeglang Regency, Lebak Regency, Tangerang Regency and Mayoralty, and Cilegon Mayoralty. After the change, at present West Java consists of 18 regencies, nine mayoralties, 584 districts, 5,201 villages and 609 sub districts.
The capital city of West Java province is Bandung city. Bandung is situated 180 km southeast of Jakarta. The city gamed fame in 1955 as the venue for the first Afro-Asian Conference, which brought together the leaders of 29 Asian, and African nations with the aim to promote economic and cultural relations and take a common stand against colonialism.

The road from Jakarta to Bandung passes through a beautiful panorama of mountains, paddy fields and small holiday resorts. An expressway connects the crowded capital city with Bogor and the mountain areas, and onward to Bandung. It has a number of sea resorts on its western and southern coasts, which have modern hotels and are popular during the weekends. The Sundanese people are soft-spoken. The women of the Bandung region are known for their beauty. A lighthearted people who have a love for bright colors, their mournful "kecapi" music is memory of beautiful legends


Climate

West Java has tropical climate with temperature reaching 9 degrees Celsius at the Peak of Mount Pangrango and 34 degrees Celsius in north beach. The average rainfall is at 2,000 millimeters per year, but in the mountainous areas the rainfall could reach 3,000 to 5,000 millimeters per year.


Population

Based on the national census in 1999, West Java population after the separation of Banten stood at 34,555,622 people. In 2000, based on another census, the population grew to 35,500,611 people with population density of 1,022 inhabitants per square kilometer. The population growth between 1990 and 2000 reached 2.17 %. In 2003, the population has increased to 38,059,540 people with population density of 1,064 inhabitants per square kilometer.