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Indonesia’s first planned Independence Day celebrations in its multi-billion dollar new capital ended in an embarrassing backtracking for the government, which was forced to scale back its plans and withdraw invitations to foreign dignitaries.

The country had planned a major ceremony for Saturday in Nusantara, the new capital being carved out of Borneo’s jungles at an estimated cost of $30 billion, with thousands of politicians attending.

But the ambitious project – a signature project of outgoing President Joko Widodo – has been plagued by delays, forcing the government to slash its guest list from 8,000 to 1,300 just days before the August 17 celebrations.

The small ceremony underscores the setbacks the project has suffered in the final months of Widodo’s presidency and raises new doubts about its fate as he prepares to hand over leadership of Southeast Asia’s largest economy to his successor, Prabowo Subianto, in October.

Nusantara’s development has been hampered by construction delays, problems acquiring land and the absence of much-vaunted foreign investors. Concerns were heightened after the unexpected resignation of the project’s management in June.

Widodo, popularly known as Jokowi, said the guest list had to be cut because Nusantara did not have the facilities. “There was not enough accommodation and food as the ecosystem here is yet to be built,” the president said this week at a groundbreaking ceremony for a convention center in the new capital.

Indonesia will now hold two Independence Day ceremonies: one in Nusantara led by Widodo and Prabowo, and another in Jakarta with the current and incoming vice presidents.

Foreign diplomats were informed 10 days before the ceremony that they were no longer invited to Nusantara and were instead asked to attend the celebrations at the presidential palace in Jakarta, according to a letter from the Foreign Ministry seen by the Financial Times.

“The previous arrangements for the heads of mission of the capital Nusantara to attend the ceremony are no longer valid,” the ministry said in a letter dated August 6.

Widodo first announced plans in 2022 to move the Indonesian capital from heavily congested Jakarta – the fastest sinking and most polluted city in the world – to Nusantara.

By moving the capital to an underdeveloped part of Indonesia, Widodo also intended to distribute wealth throughout the archipelago state.

But critics say the project was rushed and the government has not adequately researched the remote site, which is more than 1,200 kilometers from the current capital. Reliable supplies of drinking water and electricity are difficult to obtain, and an airport that was supposed to be ready by Independence Day is still not finished, leaving the nearest airport two hours away.

Widodo has said government activities will be gradually moved to Nusantara, with full completion planned for 2045. Thousands of civil servants are due to move starting in September, but enthusiasm is low. One official told the FT they do not want to move because infrastructure is inadequate and travel costs to Jakarta are too high.

But Widodo has rushed to put the project on a more solid footing before he steps down this year, after a decade in office in which he tried to transform Indonesia’s economy.

To allay concerns following the resignation of the Nusantara leadership, Widodo spent a night in the newly built presidential palace and held cabinet meetings in the capital.

Financing also fell short of expectations. Widodo had set a target of 80 percent of financing from the private sector, but despite tax breaks and expanded land rights, little of this has been seen. The Indonesian government is expected to spend 72.3 trillion rupiah ($4.6 billion) from the national budget on Nusantara from 2022 to the end of 2024.

Despite Prabowo’s assurances that he will continue building Nusantara, economists warn that his government will have to prioritize spending on several ambitious projects due to already strained public finances.

The FT reported last month that Prabowo’s team was considering cutting Nusantara’s budget to fund his key campaign promise of providing free meals for schoolchildren and pregnant women nationwide – a program his aides estimate would cost $28 billion.

“At least I will go ahead and help to complete it if possible, even though developing a capital city is not a short-term task but a long and difficult one,” Prabowo said this week.

Kennedy Muslim, a political analyst at Indikator Politik Indonesia, said Nusantara’s future would depend on Widodo’s influence on the next government.

“Jokowi is in a race against time before he steps down … to ensure the development of Nusantara,” he said. “The big question remains how Jokowi can maintain his political influence.”