Riau Islands

This article is about the current province of Indonesia. For the archipelago that is part of the province, see Riau Archipelago. For the neighboring Indonesian province at Sumatra, see Riau.

Riau Islands
Kepulauan Riau
Province
Province of Riau Islands
Provinsi Kepulauan Riau
Coat of arms of Riau Islands
Coat of arms
Motto(s): 
Berpancang Amanah Bersauh Marwah
برڤنچاڠ أمانه برساءوه مروه‎ (Malay)
"With trust as foundation, and dignity as the anchor"
   Riau Islands in    Indonesia
OpenStreetMap
Map
Coordinates: 3°56′N 108°09′E / 3.933°N 108.150°E / 3.933; 108.150
Established24 September 2002
CapitalTanjungpinang
Largest cityBatam
Divisions7 regencies and cities, 70 districts, 416 villages
Government
 • BodyRiau Islands Provincial Government
 • GovernorAnsar Ahmad (Golkar)
 • Vice GovernorMarlin Agustina [id]
Area
 • Total
8,269.71 km2 (3,192.95 sq mi)
 • Rank35th in Indonesia
Elevation
2−5 m (−14 ft)
Highest elevation
(Gunung Daik [id])
1,165 m (3,822 ft)
Lowest elevation
0 m (0 ft)
Population
 (mid 2023 official estimate)[1]
 • Total
2,162,140
 • Rank27th in Indonesia
 • Density260/km2 (680/sq mi)
  • Rank10th in Indonesia
Demographics (2009)[2]
 • Ethnic groups
 • Religion
 • LanguagesIndonesian (official)
Malay (regional)
Other languages:
Javanese, Minangkabau, Batak, Buginese, Banjarese, Chinese
Time zoneUTC+7 (Indonesia Western Time)
ISO 3166 codeID-KR
Vehicle registrationBP
GDP (nominal)2022[3]
 - TotalRp 308.8 trillion (12th)
US$ 20.8 billion
Int$ 64.9 billion (PPP)
 - Per capitaRp 141.7 million (5th)
US$ 9,542
Int$ 29,744 (PPP)
 - GrowthIncrease 5.09%[4]
HDI (2024)Increase 0.799[5] (3rd) – high
Websitekepriprov.go.id

The Riau Islands (Indonesian: Kepulauan Riau, Jawi: كڤولاوان رياو‎, Chinese: 廖內群島) is a province of Indonesia—not to be confused with neighbouring Riau Province from which the Riau Islands Province were separated in 2002. The capital of the province is Tanjung Pinang, while the largest city is Batam. It shares a maritime border with Riau and Jambi to the west, Bangka Belitung Islands to the south, Singapore to the northeast, Malaysia and West Kalimantan to the east, and Vietnam and Cambodia to the north. It comprises a total of 2,028 islands (1,798 having names) scattered between Sumatra, Malay Peninsula, and Borneo including the Riau Archipelago.[6] Situated on one of the world's busiest shipping lanes along the Malacca Strait and the Natuna Sea (South China Sea), the province shares water borders with neighboring countries such as Singapore, Malaysia, and Brunei. The Riau Islands also have relatively large potential mineral resources and energy, as well as marine resources.[7]

The Riau archipelago was once part of the Johor Sultanate, which was later partitioned between the Dutch East Indies and British Malaya after the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824, in which the archipelago fell under Dutch influence.[8] A Dutch protectorate, the Riau-Lingga Sultanate, was established in the region between 1824 and 1911 before being directly ruled by the Dutch East Indies.[9] The archipelago became a part of Indonesia following the occupation of the Japanese Empire (1942–1945) and the Indonesian National Revolution (1945–1949). The Riau Islands separated from the province of Riau in September 2002, becoming Indonesia's third-youngest province.

A free trade zone of the Indonesia–Malaysia–Singapore Growth Triangle, the Riau Islands has experienced rapid industrialisation since the 1970s. The Riau Islands is one of the country's most prosperous provinces, having a GDP per capita of Rp 72,571,750 (US$8,300.82) as of 2011, the fourth highest among all provinces in Indonesia after East Kalimantan, Jakarta and Riau.[10] In addition, as of 2018, the Riau Islands has a Human Development Index of 0.748, also the fourth highest among all provinces in Indonesia after Jakarta, Special Region of Yogyakarta and East Kalimantan.[11]

The population of the Riau Islands is heterogeneous and is highly diverse in ethnicity, culture, language and religion. The province is home to different ethnic groups such as the Malays, Tionghoa, Javanese, Minangkabau and others. Economic rise in the region has attracted many immigrants and workers from other parts of Indonesia.[12] The area around Batam is also home to many expatriates from different countries. Approximately 80% of these are from other Asian countries, with most of the westerners coming from the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, as well as Australia and the United States. The province also has the second largest number of foreign tourist arrivals in Indonesia, after Bali.[13]

  1. ^ Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2024.
  2. ^ Kepulauan Riau, Keberagaman Identitas dalam Kesatuan Kultur. ePaper Interaktif Kompas. 6 February 2009.
  3. ^ Badan Pusat Statistik (2023). "Produk Domestik Regional Bruto (Milyar Rupiah), 2020–2022" (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Badan Pusat Statistik.
  4. ^ Badan Pembangunan Nasional (2023). "Capaian Indikator Utama Pembangunan" (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Badan Pembangunan Nasional.
  5. ^ "Indeks Pembangunan Manusia 2024" (in Indonesian). Statistics Indonesia. 2024. Retrieved 15 November 2024.
  6. ^ "Jumlah Pulau di Kepri Berubah".
  7. ^ Freeman, Donald B. (2003). The Straits of Malacca: Gateway or Gauntlet?. McGill-Queen's University Press. ISBN 0-7735-2515-7.. A book review citing this information can be found at University of Toronto Quarterly, Volume 74, Number 1, Winter 2004/5, pp. 528-530
  8. ^ M. A. Fawzi Mohd. Basri (1988). Johor, 1855–1917: pentadbiran dan perkembangannya [Johor, 1855–1917: its administration and development] (in Malay). Fajar Bakti. ISBN 978-967-933-717-4.
  9. ^ "Meneroka Peran Cendekiawan Kerajaan Riau-Lingga dalam Menentang Belanda (3)" (in Indonesian). Batam: Batampos.co.id. 4 November 2014. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
  10. ^ "[Seri 2010] Produk Domestik Regional Bruto Per Kapita Atas Dasar Harga Berlaku Menurut Provinsi, 2010–2016 (Ribu Rupiah)". Badan Pusat Statistik. Diakses pada tanggal 27 November 2017.
  11. ^ "Human Development Indices by Province, 2010–2018 (New Method)" (in Indonesian). Retrieved 22 April 2019.
  12. ^ Hutchinson, Francis E.; Chong, Terence (14 June 2016). The SIJORI Cross-Border Region: Transnational Politics, Economics, and Culture. ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute. ISBN 9789814695589 – via Google Books.
  13. ^ "Kunjungan Turis Asing ke Kepri Tempati Urutan Kedua secara Nasional". Bisnis Indonesia. 4 December 2019. Retrieved 24 January 2020.