Location:
Southeastern Asia, archipelago between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. Read our Indonesia Travel Information page for more details on how to get in and around the country.
Geography:
Indonesia’s total area is 1,919,440 sq km, making it slightly less than three times the size of Texas. Indonesia’s climate is tropical; a hot, humid temperature is usual on the lowlands, with a more moderate climate pervading the highlands. The geography consists of mostly coastal lowlands; Indonesia’s larger islands have interior mountains. Its highest point is the Puncak Jaya with a height of 5,030 m. Indonesia’s natural resources include petroleum, tin, natural gas, nickel, timber, bauxite, copper, fertile soils, coal, gold, and silver.
Population:
More than 230,000,000 people live in Indonesia. Life expectancy is 70.16 years. Birth rate is 19.65 births per 1,000. Literacy rate is 90.4%.
Languages:
Bahasa Indonesia (the official language, a modified form of Malay), English, Dutch, and local dialects (the most widely spoken of which is Javanese).
Ethnic Groups:
Javanese, Sundanese, Madurese, Minangkabau, Betawi, Bugis, Banten, and Banjar
Religion:
More than 85% of the population professes the Muslim religion; the remainder is mostly composed of Protestants, Roman Catholics, and Hindus.
Political History:
The Dutch began to colonize Indonesia in the early 17th century; the islands were occupied by Japan from 1942 to 1945. Indonesia declared its independence after Japan's surrender, but it required four years of negotiations, hostilities, and mediation before the Netherlands agreed to leave. Indonesia is the world's largest archipelagic state and home to the world's largest Muslim population.
Economic Overview:
Indonesia, a vast polyglot nation, has struggled to overcome the Asian financial crisis, and still grapples with persistent poverty and unemployment, inadequate infrastructure, endemic corruption, a fragile banking sector, a poor investment climate, and unequal resource distribution among regions. The country continues the slow work of rebuilding from the devastating December 2004 tsunami and from an earthquake in central Java in May 2006 that caused over $3 billion in damage and losses. Declining oil production and lack of new exploration investment turned Indonesia into a net oil importer in 2004.
