Metro TV reported that the baby boy, who was invited by the Japanese Medical Association and sponsored by a Japanese television network, will leave for Japan by month's end after the Japanese Consulate General in Medan, on the island of Sumatra, finishes processing his visa.

Akbar Risuddin, whose given name means "great" in Arabic, weighed 8.7 kilograms and was 62 centimeters long when he was born on Sept. 21 in a Medan hospital. He is now 9 kg in weight.

The baby, whose two elder brothers were 5.3 kg and 4.4 kg at birth, was delivered from a diabetic 41-year-old mother by Caesarean section through a difficult process of delivery due to his extreme weight.

The plan to bring Akbar to Japan, however, has sparked controversy. Although his doctor supports the plan, some of his neighbors say he will only be exploited by Japanese doctors and the media.

The former record holder in Indonesia was a 6.9 kg baby boy, who was born in the town of Karanganyar in Central Java Province last year.

The Guinness Book of World Records says the heaviest baby ever, weighing 10.8 kg, was born to Anna Bates of Canada in 1879, but died 11 hours after birth.