Decentralization of Forest Administration in Indonesia


Book Description

Since the collapse of Soeharto’s New Order regime in May 1998, Indonesia’s national, provincial, and district governments have engaged in an intense struggle over how authority and the power embedded in it, should be shared. How this ongoing struggle over authority in the forestry sector will ultimately play out is of considerable significance due to the important role that Indonesia’s forests play in supporting rural livelihoods, generating economic revenues, and providing environmental services. This book examines the process of forestry sector decentralization that has occurred in post-Soeharto Indonesia, and assesses the implications of more recent efforts by the national government to recentralize administrative authority over forest resources. It aims to describe the dynamics of decentralization in the forestry sector, to document major changes that occurred as district governments assumed a greater role in administering forest resources, and to assess what the ongoing struggle among Indonesia’s national, provincial, and district governments is likely to mean for forest sustainability, economic development at multiple levels, and rural livelihoods. Drawing from primary research conducted by numerous scientists both at CIFOR and its many Indonesian and international partner institutions since 2000, this book sketches the sectoral context for current governmental reforms by tracing forestry development and the changing structure of forest administration from Indonesia’s independence in 1945 to the fall of Soeharto’s New Order regime in 1998. The authors further examine the origins and scope of Indonesia’s decentralization laws in order to describe the legal-regulatory framework within which decentralization has been implemented both at the macro-level and specifically within the forestry sector. This book also analyses the decentralization of Indonesia’s fiscal system and describes the effects of the country’s new fiscal balancing arrangements on revenue flows from the forestry sector, and describes the dynamics of district-level timber regimes following the adoption of Indonesia’s decentralization laws. Finally, this book also examines the real and anticipated effects of decentralization on land tenure and livelihood security for communities living in and around forested areas, and summarizes major findings and options for possible interventions to strengthen the forestry reform efforts currently underway in Indonesia.




Sustainable Development Goals in Southeast Asia and ASEAN


Book Description

The international community has come together to pursue certain fundamental, common goals over the coming period to 2030 to make progress toward ending poverty and hunger, improving social and economic well-being, preserving the environment and combating climate change, and maintaining peace. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been agreed to by states, which have in turn adopted national targets and action plans. This volume studies the governance and implementation of these goals in Southeast Asia, in particular the difficulties in the shift from the international to the national, the multi-level challenges of implementation, and the involvement of stakeholders, civil society, and citizens in the process. Contributors to this volume are scholars from across Southeast Asia who research these issues in developing (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar), middle-income (Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam), and developed countries (Brunei, Singapore) in the region. The perspectives on governance and the SDGs emerge from the fields of political science, international relations, geography, economics, law, health, and the natural sciences.




The Decentralization of Forest Governance


Book Description

'This book provides an excellent overview of more than a decade of transformation in a forest landscape where the interests of local people, extractive industries and globally important biodiversity are in conflict. The studies assembled here teach us that plans and strategies are fine but, in the real world of the forest frontier, conservation must be based upon negotiation, social learning and an ability to muddle through.' Jeffrey Sayer, senior scientific adviser, Forest Conservation Programme IUCN - International Union for of Nature The devolution of control over the world's forests from national or state and provincial level governments to local control is an ongoing global trend that deeply affects all aspects of forest management, conservation of biodiversity, control over resources, wealth distribution and livelihoods. This powerful new book from leading experts provides an in-depth account of how trends towards increased local governance are shifting control over natural resource management from the state to local societies, and the implications of this control for social justice and the environment. The book is based on ten years of work by a team of researchers in Malinau, Indonesian Borneo, one of the world's richest forest areas. The first part of the book sets the larger context of decentralization's impact on power struggles between the state and society. The authors then cover in detail how the devolution process has occurred in Malinau, the policy context, struggles and conflicts and how Malinau has organized itself. The third part of the book looks at the broader issues of property relations, conflict, local governance and political participation associated with decentralization in Malinau. Importantly, it draws out the salient points for other international contexts including the important determination that 'local political alliances', especially among ethnic minorities, are taking on greater prominence and creating new opportunities to influence forest policy in the world's richest forests from the ground up. This is top-level research for academics and professionals working on forestry, natural resource management, policy and resource economics worldwide. Published with CIFOR




Time to ACT


Book Description

Indonesia has urbanized rapidly since its independence in 1945, profoundly changing its economic geography and giving rise to a diverse array of urban places. These places range from the bustling metropolis of Jakarta to rapidly emerging urban centers in hitherto largely rural parts of the country. Although urbanization has produced considerable benefits for many Indonesians, its potential has only been partially realized. Time to ACT: Realizing Indonesia’s Urban Potential explores the extent to which urbanization in Indonesia has delivered in terms of prosperity, inclusiveness, and livability. The report takes a broad view of urbanization’s performance in these three key areas, covering both the monetary and nonmonetary aspects of welfare. It analyzes the fundamental reforms that can help the country to more fully achieve widespread and sustainable benefits, and it introduces a new policy framework—the ACT framework—to guide policy making. This framework emphasizes the three policy principles of Augment, Connect, and Target: • Augment the provision and quality of infrastructure and basic services across urban and rural locations • Connect places and people to jobs and opportunities and services • Target lagging areas and marginalized groups through well-designed place-based policies, as well as thoughtful urban planning and design. Using this framework, the report provides policy recommendations differentiated by four types of place that differ in both their economic characteristics and the challenges that they face— multidistrict metro areas, single-district metro areas, nonmetro urban areas, and nonmetro rural areas. In addition to its eight chapters, Time to ACT: Realizing Indonesia’s Urban Potential includes four spotlights on strengthening the disaster resilience of Indonesian cities, the nexus between urbanization and human capital, the “invisible†? crisis of wastewater management, and the potential for smart cities in Indonesia. If Indonesia continues to urbanize in line with global historical standards, more than 70 percent of its population will be living in towns and cities by the time the country celebrates the centenary of its independence in 2045. Accordingly, how Indonesia manages this continued expansion of its urban population—and the mounting congestion forces that expansion brings—will do much to determine whether the country reaches the upper rungs of the global ladder of prosperity, inclusiveness, and livability.




Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Democracy and Social Transformation (ICON-DEMOST 2023)


Book Description

This is an open access book. Faculty of Social and Political Science, State Islamic University Walisongo Semarang, has been playing significant roles in building global peace and justice by conducting scientific research and creating a space for academic dialogue and discussion. This goal is in line with our vision to be a Research Faculty based on the unity of sciences for humanity and civilization. As part of the efforts to create a space for academic dialogue at a global level, we organize an international conference which aims to develop scientific knowledge, build institutional capacity, and strengthen international networking. The conference is also held to support State Islamic University Walisongo Semarang in achieving its vision to be an Islamic world-class university. The conference raises the issue of democracy and social transformation to capture the social and political dynamics. The selection of this topic is based on the idea that technological development is becoming a crucial issue within modern society in which people tend to experience alienation within the rapid social and political transformation. Democracy as a political system that ensures transparency, citizen participation, and human rights protection is now under threat. Having the fact that there is a growing tendency of using transactional politics to win political interests such as the use of money and identity in political processes, therefore, political analysts consider this situation as the regression of democracy. Rapid social and cultural transformation as a consequence of advanced technology creates problems in modern society. On one hand, technology has made the life of people easier. However, on the other hand, the sense of humanity’s values and principles is declining. This situation can be observed in the decrease in social solidarity and the rise of individualism. Modernity that values productivity and economic growth has brought a negative impact on the life of human being and nature. The exploitative character of industrialization has created an ecological crisis. Advanced information technology has loosened social cohesivity and the rise of instrumental rationality has removed local genius or local wisdom from the life of society. Since the ultimate goal of humanity is respecting the dignity of human beings, hence, bringing back humanity to the center of the development program is crucial, especially in the current social and political dynamics. In the political context, humanity means respecting the basic rights of the citizen and putting them as a subject of political development and not perceiving citizens as only an instrument to win political power. Based on the above background, this conference is organized. The overall goal of the conference is to mainstream humanity in the current social and political change. The conference is also expected to be an arena for scholars and experts in social and political science as well as practitioners and policymakers to meet and exchange ideas and perspectives for a better future of our society.




Disasters and Regional Development in Indonesia


Book Description

Due to its location, Indonesia is prone to large seismic activities, some of which have caused a significant number of fatalities and damages to human livelihoods. The country, hence, has to always be prepared and resilient toward these kinds of event. Abilities to soften the human and economic impact of natural shocks and to bounce back the economy as quickly as we can are crucial in sustaining the human and economic development of the country. This book presents disaster-related issues, including disaster management, sustaining regional development, improving human capital in the country, rural development and conserving the environment. Hopefully this book can attract more regional scientists to work on disasters and regional development issues.




Decentralization, Local Governance, and Localizing the Sustainable Development Goals in Asia and the Pacific


Book Description

Since its adoption in 2015, the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development has shaped not only international development cooperation but also the design of national trajectories for social and economic development. In tandem with other global agendas adopted that year (such as the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and UN Habitat’s New Urban Agenda) it remains the global and regional blueprint for sustainable development despite the COVID-19 pandemic. The term "localizing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)" has been used to capture the importance of subnational governments for achieving national SDG agendas. However, there is little deeper analysis of the required nexus between fiscal, political, and legal arrangements for SNGs; their involvement in national policy arenas (which discuss and decide on national SDG strategies); and the need for locally disaggregated data systems on the one hand, and effective SDG localization strategies on the other hand. It is this aspect which the present publication explores in greater detail by using country examples and conceptual analyses. The text will be of interest to policymakers, scholars, students and practitioners in public policy and public administration, decentralization, and sustainable development, with a focus on the Asia and Pacific region. The Open Access version of this book, available at www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-No Derivative License (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 IGO).




The Political Economy of Democratic Decentralization


Book Description

Nearly all countries worldwide are now experimenting with decentralization. Their motivation are diverse. Many countries are decentralizing because they believe this can help stimulate economic growth or reduce rural poverty, goals central government interventions have failed to achieve. Some countries see it as a way to strengthen civil society and deepen democracy. Some perceive it as a way to off-load expensive responsibilities onto lower level governments. Thus, decentralization is seen as a solution to many different kinds of problems. This report examines the origins and implications decentralization from a political economy perspective, with a focus on its promise and limitations. It explores why countries have often chosen not to decentralize, even when evidence suggests that doing so would be in the interests of the government. It seeks to explain why since the early 1980s many countries have undertaken some form of decentralization. This report also evaluates the evidence to understand where decentralization has considerable promise and where it does not. It identifies conditions needed for decentralization to succeed. It identifies the ways in which decentralization can promote rural development. And it names the goals which decentralization will probably not help achieve.