Institutional inertia: challenges in urban water management on the path towards a water-sensitive Surabaya, Indonesia

ABSTRACT

Traditional approaches to urban water management are increasingly questioned. To understand whether the alternative water-sensitive city (WSC) paradigm is applicable in Surabaya, Indonesia, its water governance system was analyzed using semi-structured interviews with relevant stakeholders, questionnaires, and a literature review. Three main institutional obstacles to a transition towards a WSC were identified: national and local political interference; lack of institutional coordination; and the commercialization of Surabaya’s water utility. A discord between water practitioners’ individual beliefs and water management practices also makes changes towards a WSC difficult. Yet, opportunities are found where existing political goals align with elements of the WSC.

KEYWORDS:

• Water governance
• water-sensitive city
• urban water management
• institutional challenges
• modern infrastructural ideal
• Surabaya

Acknowledgments

This research was partially supported by the IHE Delft Institute for Water Education. We thank our partners from ITS in Surabaya, who provided insight and expertise that greatly assisted the research, although the conclusions of this article are based on the authors’ interpretation of the data collected. We would like to show special gratitude to Dr Maria Anityasari, head of the International Office at ITS, for sharing her research data with us.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed here.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the IHE-Delft / DGIS [DUPC2 programme, AltWater project].