JAKARTA WILL WELCOME NEW MIGRANTS, BUT ONLY THOSE WITH SKILLS

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Aug 20 (ANTARA) - The population in many cities and urban areas across Indonesia is expected to swell, following the return of around 16 million holiday travelers to their places of work, after celebrating the Idul-Fitr festival with their families in their hometowns.          Jakarta has become one of the most sought after destinations for new migrants looking to move to urban areas. The exodus of tens of thousands of such migrants from rural and small-towns in Indonesia to the capital city every year after the annual Lebaran holiday has become something of a tradition.          However, as a result Jakarta has been facing urbanization problems, with a booming population of about 9.2 million, and an additional 2.7 million workers, who commute to the city on a daily basis for work, from satellite towns such as Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, and Bekasi.          So for all practical purposes, the total population of Jakarta can be pegged at 11.9 million during the day time.