JAKARTA: In a bid to tackle the worsening air quality in Indonesia’s capital, Jakarta, half of its civil servants, or thousands of public employees, were directed to work from home as of Monday. This two-month trial aims to alleviate the city’s elevated airborne concentration of particulate matter known as PM2.5, which has recently surpassed levels in heavily polluted cities such as Riyadh, Doha, and Lahore.
With Jakarta and its neighboring areas constituting a megalopolis inhabited by approximately 30 million people, concerns over toxic smog have escalated. While activists attribute the high pollution levels to clusters of factories and coal-fired power plants in close proximity to the city, the government maintains that the deterioration in air quality is largely influenced by weather and traffic.
The official government notice, seen by AFP, outlines that the work-from-home initiative serves two purposes: reducing traffic congestion during the ASEAN summit next month and addressing air pollution levels in Jakarta. As per the notice, 50 percent of civil servants employed by the Jakarta administration are required to work remotely from August 21 to October 21. Moreover, during the ASEAN summit taking place between September 4 and 7, up to 75 percent of government workers in the capital will work from home. Jakarta employed around 50,000 civil servants as of July, according to the regional civil service agency.
Strategy to Improve Air Quality in Jakarta
Acting Jakarta Governor Heru Budi Hartono stated on Sunday that local governments in satellite cities surrounding Jakarta are considering similar work-from-home arrangements for civil servants, albeit for a shorter duration. He emphasized that the government would closely monitor the policy’s effectiveness and could terminate it earlier than planned if deemed unsuccessful.
“If it’s effective, then I have to report to the Home Ministry,” Hartono explained. “If before October 21, it was not effective, for example, the civil servants who work from home are not disciplined, I will revert (the policy).”
The trial initiative is part of a comprehensive strategy to improve air quality in Jakarta. Coordinating Maritime and Investment Affairs Minister Luhut Pandjaitan emphasized in a recent Instagram post that the government’s emission control measures would focus on the industrial and power-generation sectors. Pandjaitan indicated efforts to require industries to use “scrubbers,” reduce coal-fired power plants, and implement stricter vehicle emission tests.
Officials revealed that vehicle emissions contribute to 44 percent of air pollution in Jakarta, followed by the energy industry at 31 percent and manufacturing at 10 percent.
Amid soaring PM2.5 levels in August, Jakarta consistently topped Swiss company IQAir’s live ranking of air pollution in major cities, emphasizing the urgency of implementing effective strategies to counter the ongoing air quality crisis.
