Baubau

Baubau
City of Baubau
Kota Baubau
Clockwise from top: Baubau city waterfront, Buton Palace Fortress, Baubau Dragon Statue, Islamic Center of Baubau
Location within Southeast Sulawesi
OpenStreetMap
Baubau
Location in Sulawesi and Indonesia
Baubau
Baubau (Indonesia)
Coordinates: 5°27′44″S 122°36′21″E / 5.46222°S 122.60583°E / -5.46222; 122.60583
Country Indonesia
RegionSulawesi
Province Southeast Sulawesi
City Status21 June 2001
Government
  MayorYusran Fahim
  Vice MayorWa Ode Hamsinah Bolu
Area
  Total
294.98 km2 (113.89 sq mi)
Population
 (2023 estimate)
  Total
161,280
  Density550/km2 (1,400/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+8 (Indonesia Central Time)
Area code(+62) 402
HDI (2023) 0.775 (High)
Websitebaubaukota.go.id

Baubau is a city in Southeast Sulawesi province, Indonesia. The city is located on the southwest coast of Buton island. Baubau attained city status on 21 June 2001 after Law Number 13 of 2001 was passed. It covers an area of 294.98 square kilometres (113.89 sq mi), of which about 30 square kilometres (12 sq mi) is water. It had a population of 136,991 at the 2010 Census and 159,248 at the 2020 Census; the official estimate in mid-2023 was 161,280. The city is the economic center of the Buton Island region and the second-largest city in the province. It was the cultural center of the Butonese people, the former capital of the Sultanate of Buton, the seat of the colonial administration of Eastern Sulawesi (Afdeeling Ost Celebes), and briefly the capital of the entire Southeast Sulawesi regency until 1955 when the capital status shifted to neighbouring Kendari.