Kota Tua, aka the Old Town area of North Jakarta, may soon join the likes of Borobudur, the Taj Mahal and the Eiffel Tower as it has been nominated for World Heritage Site status by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization).
Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama said Kota Tua earned the nomination following an application submitted by the Ministry of Education and Culture to UNESCO.
Ahok said if Old Town does become a full-fledged World Heritage Site, the city administration would put even more work into improving the 1.3 square kilometer area, filled with numerous Dutch colonial era buildings.
The city has put a renewed emphasis on maintaining and revitalizing the area in a bid to make it more attractive to tourists and Jakartans alike.
“I think Kota Tua is so much cleaner now. Rubbish is not disposed of carefully and there are more toilet. So we also hope there there will be more businesses there soon,” Ahok said today, as quoted by MetroTV.
Tonight, the city government along with the Jakarta Old Town Revitalization Corporation (JOTRC) and the Jakarta Endowment for the Arts and Heritage are holding a gala event to celebrate the nomination at Kota Tua’s most famous F&B spot, Cafe Batavia.
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