Situating the urban poor in informal settlement within Jakarta’s water governance shift to remunicipalisation

Abstract

The emergence of remunicipalisation in the past five years has brought a refreshing perspective to the water governance debate in Jakarta. By embracing the principles of equality and sustainability, water remunicipalisation has the potential to serve as a form of governance, particularly for the urban disadvantaged residing in informal settlements, which bear the disproportionate burden of persistent water inequality. This study aims to examine water governance through the lens of the urban poor in informal settlements and assess to what extent water remunicipalisation holds transformative capabilities for existing unequal systems. Employing an analytical framework that combines environmental justice, feminist political ecology, and everyday governance, the analysis will concentrate on aspects such as distribution, recognition, participation, scale, and multiple identities. Focusing on the case study of Penjaringan, an informal settlement in Jakarta, this research will explore the diverse experiences of water inequality as it intersects with gender, tenancy status, and social relations. While remunicipalisation has shed light on the issue of water inequality and generated momentum for governance reform, it must also encompass the lived realities of the urban poor in informal settlements. The intricacies of the remunicipalisation process in Jakarta impede discussions on the underlying structural causes of injustice, such as misrecognition and misrepresentation. Consequently, there is a failure to analyse the manifestation of water inequality across various governance scales and establish a more inclusive governance framework. This research further proposes the expansion of water remunicipalisation critiques beyond distribution alone to include recognition, participation.