Decentralization practices and local politics in Indonesia aim to enhance community welfare significantly.
However, in practice, government decentralization policies are not fully implemented and tend to be applied uniformly across diverse regions. Therefore, the government is urged to optimize the management of decentralization policies and effectively execute environmental sustainability programs.
This issue was addressed at the Bulaksumur Roundtable Forum (BRF) titled “Managing the Dilemmas of Decentralization and Sustainability,” held on Friday, Aug. 9, 2024, at the UGM Central Office.
Organized by the Department of Political Science and Government, UGM Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (Fisipol UGM), through the UGM Collaborative Hub for Politics and Policy on Sustainability (CoPPS), this event brought together academics, activists, journalists, and government officials to discuss current societal issues.
Dr. Abdul Gaffar Karim, Head of the Department of Political Science and Government, stated that the forum aimed to identify problems and challenges and evaluate regional autonomy and local political practices in Indonesia.
Additionally, the program sought to formulate strategic steps for developing regional autonomy and supporting multi-stakeholder collaboration in promoting social, economic, and environmental sustainability.
“Indonesia has many aspirations, but not all support each other. Decentralization, for example, can become a dilemma for environmental welfare,” he noted.
Professor Purwo Santoso, a professor of political science and government at Fisipol UGM, highlighted that sustainability is complex in the era of regional autonomy. However, the Department of Political Science and Government aims to maintain sustainability and ensure that central political will is effectively decentralized.
Another UGM professor, Professor Haryanto, mentioned that various factors contribute to the ineffective implementation of decentralization in regions due to the uniform application of decentralization policies across diverse conditions.
“As a result, some regions can manage the autonomy granted while others are not, leading to disparities between regions,” he explained.
Syarmadani, Director of Domestic Politics at the Directorate General of Politics and General Government at the Ministry of Home Affairs, acknowledged that national policies on regional autonomy fluctuate, sometimes leaning towards centralization and vice versa.
Deputy of Development Control at the Nusantara Capital Authority (IKN), Dr. Thomas Umbu Pati Tena Bolodadi, noted that the IKN government learns from previous local government experiences and ensures that development in IKN aligns with the five development elements.
“Sustainability and green issues are significant, and we have conceptually implemented them in IKN,” he said.
Neneng Goenadi, Country Managing Director of Grab Indonesia, discussed the collaboration between government and industry on sustainability. Goenadi explained that today’s rapid technological advancements leave little room for regulatory development.
“I believe that government and industry need to collaborate and work together to remain adaptive to technological advancements,” Goenadi stated.
Silverius Oscar Unggul, Vice Chair of the Environment Division at the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KADIN), emphasized that sustainability is essential for KADIN. He outlined that without sustainability, Indonesia risks losing market and investment opportunities.
“Market and investment pressures are driving Indonesia to implement sustainability,” Unggul noted.
Report by: Lazuardi
Editor: Gusti Grehenson
Post-editor: Afif