President Joko Widodo officially inaugurated the Karian Dam located in Pasir Tanjung Village, Rangkasbitung Sub-district, Lebak regency, Banten on Monday.
Addressing the inauguration ceremony, President Jokowi said the construction of the Karian Dam, with an investment of IDR 2.27 trillion (US$ 146 , began in 2015 and took nine years before it is completed in January 2024.
The Karian Dam, one of the largest dams in Indonesia, has a storage volume of 315 million cubic meters and an inundation area of 1,773 hectares. “The Karian Dam is one of the largest dams we have built in Indonesia,” said the President during the inauguration ceremony in Banten.
Jokowi explained that the Karian Dam would benefit people in Banten, Jakarta, and a small part of West Java.
One of the benefits is its irrigation capacity of 22,000 hectares of rice fields. Additionally, the dam can meet the need for raw water with a capacity of 14.6 cubic meters per second in Serang Regency, Serang City, Cilegon City, Lebak Regency, Tangerang Regency, South Tangerang City, Tangerang City, West Jakarta and Bogor Regency.
Moreover, the Karian Dam serves as flood reduction for downstream areas, amounting to 60.8 million cibic meters. As part of the 65 dams built by the Ministry of Public Works and Housing from 2015-2019, the Karian Dam contributes to realizing food sovereignty and water resilience. Initially targeted for completion in 2019, the government faced delays, revising the target to 2022, but the project lagged behind again, before finally being inaugurated in 2024.
