[3][4][5] When the capital development was launched, its population was 153,000 people, living in the existing villages such as Bumi Harapan, Pemaluan, and Sepaku.

[6] Nusantara is planned to be a special capital region at the provincial level, replacing Jakarta to save the city from overpopulation and land sinking.

The project is estimated to be worth Rp 523 trillion (US$35 billion) and will be fully finished in five phases until 2045, coinciding with the 100th anniversary of Indonesia.

The relocation proposal kept being discussed for decades until the presidency of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono who supported the idea to create a new political and administrative centre of Indonesia due to Jakarta's environmental and overpopulation problems.

[22][23] In April 2017, the 7th president Joko Widodo ordered the Ministry of National Development Planning of Indonesia (Bappenas) to assess prospective alternative sites for new capital outside of Java.

[29] The National Development Planning Ministry recommended the three provinces of South, Central, and East Kalimantan which Widodo visited, given that each met the requirements for a new capital—including being relatively free from earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanoes,[30] as well as allowing for a maritime port.

[37] At the same time, US$40 billion will be allocated to saving Jakarta from sinking in the next decade,[38][39][40] which has also been widely reported as the fundamental underlying cause for the relocation of the capital.

[49] The city is designed for sustainability and protecting its surrounding Kalimantan forests, targeting 80% of mobility to be supported by public transport, cycling, or walking and drawing all of its energy from renewable sources and allocating 10% of its area to food production.

[62] At a conference in Singapore in June 2023, Widodo tried to reassure investors that the project would continue irrespective of who would win the 2024 Indonesian presidential election, and that Nusantara was a "golden opportunity" for investment.

[63] By August 2023, the government had only allocated 20% of the total funds needed, and investors were reluctant to make up the shortfall because of political uncertainty and Indonesia's record of underinvestment in infrastructure.

These included Swissotel, which is owned by Accor Group, working with Hotel Nusantara and Sembcorp partnering with state-owned electricity company PLN.

[66] Until the end of his presidency, Widodo had launched a total of eight groundbreaking ceremonies, with an investment value of Rp58,41 trillion from both local and foreign investors.

[69] On 3 June 2024 it was announced that Bambang Susantono, head of the Nusantara Capital City Authority, along with his deputy, Dhony Rahajoe, had resigned.

[15] The following week, Basuki Hadimuljono announced that President Joko Widodo's office may be moving there in September after the completion of IKN airport.

[73][74] President Prabowo Subianto has confirmed his administration's commitment to continue the development of Nusantara as Indonesia's new capital.

Prabowo expressed hope that Nusantara could host the 2028 People's Consultative Assembly session, symbolizing the city’s role as the seat of government.

The city shares a land border with the province of East Kalimantan and has a coastal line that stretches eastward to the Makassar Strait and southward to Balikpapan Bay.

The Nusantara metropolitan area will include the surrounding regencies and cities of East Kalimantan, such as Balikpapan and Samarinda.

[82] In June 2024, Bambang Susantono and Dhony Rahajoe resigned from their respective roles ahead of the inauguration of the city.

While Bambang Susantono was appointed as the Republic of Indonesia Special Presidential Envoy for the International Cooperation on Nusantara.

[92] A planned toll road spanning 47 km (29 mi) will be built to connect the government central area with the Nusantara International Airport and Balikpapan.