Work

Asymmetric power relations in multistakeholder initiatives: Insights from the government-instituted Indonesian National Forestry Council

Year: 2022

Type: article

Abstract: In the reform era, public concerns about forest degradation and to respond to forestry communities to prevent domination of forest management by the government have led to many stakeholder organizations in the form of civil movements trying to come together to create a new foundation to build a platform for forest governance change. These emerging initiatives not only create space for dialogue and debate, but also generate new forms of cross-sectoral institutions. Institutional initiatives that come from the interests of many actors from various stakeholders who come together to make an agreement. The National Forestry Council (DKN) is a multi-stakeholder initiative organization that is touted as a balancing organization for the ministry of forestry. DKN is seen as a promising multi-stakeholder governance forum model as an entry point for deliberative forestry policy processes. We explore the dynamics of DKN, especially in the power relations that occur within it. Empirical findings show that there are institutional problems in the DKN work system, Indonesia's wide geographical area which is divided into 7 regions and 7 representatives/constituents causes DKN coordination to be limited. It takes a high fee to collect members. It is not a problem for representatives of constituents who have a lot of financial resources, such as government and business, but it will be a serious problem for those whose resources are small, in this case the community, NGOs, academics. This is a source of power contestation, especially through the element of incentives/disincentives. The dependence on funding sources from the government results in the low political influence of DKN and the impression that it is the technical executor of tasks by the government. This condition makes DKN's credibility low and causes DKN to have not been able to represent itself as an effective deliberative policy instrument in the forest governance system in Indonesia.

Source: Trees Forests and People

DOI: 10.1016/j.tfp.2023.100406

Authors: Tatag Muttaqin, Emma Soraya, Budi Dharmawan, Dwi Laraswati, Ahmad Maryudi

Institutions: Universitas Gadjah Mada, Universitas Muhammadiyah Malang, Jenderal Soedirman University

Language: English

Topic: Public Policy and Administration Research

Subfield: Public Administration

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $1,000