Key Features of Community Governance Arrangements in Informal Settlements

Abstract

In the context of basic urban services formally delivered by the Municipal Government and other stakeholders, either individually, in groups or in combination, such as with state-owned companies, NGOs, international donors and community members, Chapter Six elaborate on the types and nature of basic urban service arrangements emerging in informal settlements as produced by a range of governance mechanisms. Four informal settlements in Jayapura are reviewed to assess trends and patterns, namely, Argapura Bawah, Batu Putih, Dok IX and Kayu Pulo. These settlements represent communities from various kin and ethnic backgrounds, urban locations and land tenure patterns in Jayapura. The chapter highlights key features of governance arrangements that provide basic urban services including the mechanisms applied in managing land, leadership and the organization of basic urban service provision. The results as revealed in the four settlements and strongly supported by an innovative typology analysis is that various types of urban governance arrangements provide basic urban services, albeit with diverse outcomes. The service type is repeated in each settlement, that is, housing, water, sanitation and public facilities, but they differ in terms of methods, process of construction, materials used, siting and placement (private/public/community interface), and the approach to usage (single or multifunctional). Modes of basic urban service provision in informal settlements range from self-built, group-built to community-built, and basic urban service provision undertaken in partnership with the Municipal Government and other stakeholders. As such, governance arrangements in informal settlements in Jayapura consist of several overlapping modes of governance, namely, traditional, formal and informal governance, and hybrid governance, all meeting and responding to different basic human and community needs and the adaptive capacity of stakeholders.