The Influence of Indonesia’s Geographic Location – The establishment of a region cannot be separated from its geographical location. With the geographic location, the location or position of an area will be seen very clearly. If it is clear there will be many people who know the area. The geographical location of an area starts from the smallest, such as roads, to the largest, such as continents.
Therefore, geographical location is also used as a way to know and recognize a country, including the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI). When viewed from its geographical location, Indonesia is flanked by two continents, namely the continent of Australia and the continent of Asia. Besides being flanked by two continents, Indonesia is also located between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean.
Sinaumed’s, want to know more about Indonesia’s geographical location, the influence of Indonesia’s geographical location, to the positive and negative impacts of Indonesia’s geographical location? Check out the review below, Sinaumed’s.
Geographical Location of Indonesia
Indonesia has always been known as an archipelagic country because Indonesia has so many islands. In fact, based on a record, Indonesia has approximately 17,500 islands, isn’t that a lot? We can see these islands, from Sabang to Merauke. In addition, Indonesia also crosses the Equator.
You can imagine how large the country of Indonesia is if there are around 17,500 islands. The land area of Indonesia is around 1.9 million km2. From that land area, a fairly large area will be further divided into several Provinces.
Apart from having a vast land area, Indonesia also has the second longest coastline in the world. The length of the coastline is approximately 95,181 kilometers and the area of Indonesian waters is approximately 5.8 square kilometers. Therefore, Indonesia is known as a maritime country.
The Influence of Indonesia’s Geographical Location
Every geographical location in a country will definitely have an influence from that geographical location. The influence of Indonesia’s geographical location, namely cultural diversity, there are two seasons in Indonesia, a very strategic location, there are many types of fish, prone to disasters, and very many natural resources.
1. Cultural Diversity
Indonesia, which is located between two continents, namely the continent of Asia and the continent of Australia, makes cultures enter Indonesia very quickly. Moreover, in this modern era, it is very easy to recognize or even imitate other cultures.
South Korea, which is located on the Asian continent, can be said to be one of the foreign cultures that is easily accepted by the Indonesian people. The large number of Indonesian people who are familiar with South Korean culture, acculturation and cultural assimilation will occur. Therefore, Indonesian culture will be more diverse, such as music genres, film genres, and so on.
Even though, many Indonesian people like foreign cultures like South Korea, but with Indonesia’s geographical location, Indonesian culture is also known by many countries, from food to art. For example, fried rice, Reog art, Wayang art, batik or how to make batik, and several regional languages.
However, in order to maintain food, arts, achievements, and so on, the entire Indonesian nation must work together and work together in preserving Indonesian cultures.
2. Rainy Season and Dry Season
It is undeniable that Indonesia is located between two continents and two oceans and crosses the equator. These three things make Indonesia passed by the West Monsoon and East Monsoon winds. These two winds greatly affect the season conditions in Indonesia.
The movement of the West Monsoon wind will pass through the Indian Ocean, then head to the Australian continent. From that movement, the West Monsoon wind will bring a lot of water vapor from the land, so that it will cause the rainy season to occur in several parts of Indonesia.
Meanwhile, the movement of the East Monsoon wind will start from the Australian continent towards the Asian continent. Dry air from the desert in northern Australia will be carried by the East Monsoon through a very narrow sea. Therefore, the East Monsoon winds will cause the dry season to occur in Indonesia.
Usually the rainy season in Indonesia occurs from October to March. Meanwhile, Indonesia’s dry season usually occurs from April to September. However, due to global warming which causes climate damage, the seasons in Indonesia become erratic.
3. Strategic Location
It is undeniable that the geographical location of Indonesia is very strategic because it is located between the crossroads of international trade traffic. In other words, Indonesia’s location can improve the trade economy. In this case, the intended traffic may be sea traffic or air traffic.
Not only that, Indonesia’s strategic location is very suitable for connecting industrialized countries with developing countries. Therefore, Indonesia can be said to be a meeting point in world economic activities. An example of this meeting point can be seen when countries, such as China, South Korea, Japan trade with several countries in Africa, Australia and Europe.
Thus, it is appropriate for Indonesia to take advantage of the country’s strategic location to advance or improve the country’s economy through cross-world trade routes.
4. Has Many Types of Marine Fish and Other Marine Biota
Indonesia, which is flanked by the Indian Ocean and the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean, makes Indonesian sea waters tend to be warm. This warm sea water is caused by the Arlindo event (Indonesian Cross Flow). The Arlindo event could occur due to differences in seawater pressure from the Pacific Ocean to the Indian Ocean.
Warm waters make a lot of fish and marine life to come to Indonesian waters. Therefore, it is no stranger if Indonesia has a lot of fishermen. The abundant marine life and fish are very suitable to be used as income for the country’s economy.
There is a lot of protein contained in fish, so fish is very suitable for the growth of Indonesian society. More importantly, fish can increase one’s intelligence. So, never hesitate to eat fish.
5. Prone to Disaster
Indonesia’s geographical location can affect the occurrence of natural disasters. In fact, Indonesia is one of the countries prone to disasters. This is due to Indonesia’s geographical location which is in the Pacific Ring of Fire . This ring of fire is often known as the Pacific Ring of Fire.
The Pacific Ring of Fire stretches from the Americas to Asia, including Indonesia. If it is estimated that there are approximately 40 countries traversed by the Pacific Ring of Fire and the path length is around 40,000 kilometers.
This Pacific Ring of Fire path can cause very large tectonic earthquakes, so that it can also release large amounts of energy from the bowels of the earth. Therefore, it is not uncommon for earthquakes in Indonesia to be triggered due to volcanic activity from a volcano. In fact, it could be said that about 90 percent of the earthquakes that occur on earth are in the path of the Pacific Ring of Fire.
In Indonesia, it is recorded that there are 129 volcanoes and around 70 active volcanoes. Java Island is the largest island in Indonesia that has active volcanoes. If it is estimated there are about 35 active volcanoes on the island of Java. Apart from erupting volcanoes, Indonesia also frequently experiences earthquakes and sometimes there are several tsunami disasters.
6. Lots of Natural Resources
Indonesia’s geographical location makes Indonesia has a tropical climate. An area with a tropical climate will usually have a lot of very diverse plants and animals that can survive longer.
This tropical climate makes Indonesia produce a lot of abundant natural resources. These natural resources can be used to meet the needs of the Indonesian people or can also be exported to various countries.
So, all Indonesian people should protect this abundant natural resource so that the needs of the Indonesian people can be met without having to import goods.
Advantages of Indonesia’s Geographical Position
Sinaumed’s, after discussing the influence of Indonesia’s geographical location, it feels incomplete if you don’t discuss the advantages of Indonesia’s geographical location. Here are some of the advantages that can be felt by Indonesia because of its geographical location.
1. There are many natural attractions that can be visited
The number of islands in Indonesia indicates that there are many natural attractions that can be visited by local or foreign tourists. The presence of tourists from abroad shows that Indonesia’s natural tourism is not inferior to foreign tourism or even more beautiful. The formation of natural tourism in Indonesia cannot be separated from Indonesia’s geographical location.
The large number of tourists who come to natural tourist destinations will make the economy increase, be it the economy for residents who are around natural tourism or the country’s economy.
Every major Indonesian island always has natural attractions that are often visited by many tourists, especially natural attractions that have gone viral on social media, such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and others.
2. Make it easier for Indonesia to carry out international trade
Indonesian waters are vast, so Indonesia is known as a maritime country. This waterway is very often used as an international trade route. In other words, export and import activities can be carried out easily and can improve the country’s economy.
The existence of export and import activities in Indonesian waters is because Indonesia is a meeting place for the economies of developed countries and developing countries. In fact, Indonesia can be said to be the center of international trade, especially shipping lanes.
In this globalization, each country cannot be separated from export and import activities, especially in meeting the needs of a country. In this case, Indonesia greatly benefits because it already has the advantage of Indonesia’s geographical location.
3. Helping and Improving the Community’s Economy
With Indonesia’s very strategic geographical location, it can help and improve the people’s economy. The increase in the community’s economy means that the community’s welfare has also increased. Countries can export local products so that they are known and in demand in many countries. Of course, the products that are exported must be of the highest quality.
In addition to improving export quality, the Indonesian state needs to reduce import activities so that it gets used to using local products. Reduced import activities, the expenditure of the state treasury is also reduced, so that the state treasury can be used for other needs.
In helping and improving the community’s economy, the role of the community itself is also needed. This is because what can improve the quality of local products is the community itself.
4. Having Abundant Natural Resources
Thanks to its geographical location, Indonesia’s natural resources are very abundant. Abundant natural resources are very useful to meet every community need. Community needs that are met will lead to a sense of happiness for the community itself.
In addition to meeting the needs of the community, abundant natural resources can be used to improve the people’s economy or the economy of the Indonesian state. For example, people who work as farmers can sell their crops, so they get income to meet their daily needs.
However, some non-renewable natural resources should not be used excessively. If these natural resources run out, then Indonesia can lose state treasury income or even Indonesia can experience a state treasury deficit.
5. Advancing Socio-Cultural Development
Indonesia’s geographical location can be used as a way to advance socio-cultural development, especially in the field of Science and Technology (Science and Technology). The increasingly advanced development of science and technology indicates that Indonesia is ready to face technological developments in this modern era.
In addition to the growing science and technology, the use of foreign languages makes it easier for some Indonesian people to broaden their knowledge of science. It is undeniable that to develop knowledge one must be able to use foreign languages, one of which is English.
The existence of socio-cultural developments gave rise to cultural acculturation, so that Indonesian people became more dynamic in keeping up with the times. One of the changes that can be followed by the Indonesian people is a change in dress.
6. Abundant Fish and Marine Biota
The next advantage of Indonesia’s geographical location is that fish and marine biota are very abundant, so it is very beneficial for the people and country of Indonesia. The benefit that can be felt directly by the community is consuming fish which can increase brain intelligence.
The abundance of fish and marine biota is very suitable to be used as a country’s economic income. Fish and marine biota that have been caught or cultivated can be exported to other countries.
Therefore, the Indonesian people and state should maintain the quality of seawater so that fish and marine biota always want to come to Indonesian waters.
The Positive Impact of Indonesia’s Geographic Location
Indonesia’s geographical location has a positive impact. Check out the positive impact of Indonesia’s geographical location below.
1. Communication relations with foreign nationals are going well
2. Indonesian citizens with foreign nationals are very easy to connect
3. The occurrence of cultural exchange and mixing
4. Improving the economy of society and the country
5. Natural tourism is very much
Negative Impact of Indonesia’s Geographic Location
Indonesia’s geographical location has a negative impact. Check out the negative impact of Indonesia’s geographical location below.
1. There is a change in behavior that is not in accordance with the characteristics of Indonesian culture
2. Gradually the local language will disappear
3. The emergence of a culture that is far from Indonesian cultural values
4. Natural resources can run out quickly
5. Very prone to disaster
Conclusion
Indonesia’s geographical location is very strategic, both in international trade, cultural development, many natural attractions, and so on. Even though Indonesia’s geographical location is strategic, Indonesia is very prone to natural disasters because it is located on the Pacific Ring of Fire.