Skip to main content
Original Research Article Open Access SINTA 2 Accredited

Multilevel Governance for Metropolitan Innovation in Indonesia

Linking Institutional Coordination and Digital Transformation

Authors

  • Rachman Kosasih * Corresponding author
  • Mohammad Rizky Luthfiah Aziz
  • Tomy Veryanto Bawulang
DOI
10.21787/jbp.18.2026.3233
Published & Pages
31 August 2026 · pp. 437-449
Manuscript History
Received9 Apr 2026 Published31 Aug 2026
License
CC Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0
Read PDF 1.1 MB Cite

0 Views 0 Downloads

Abstract

Metropolitan innovation increasingly depends on coordination across administrative boundaries, yet Indonesian metropolitan areas remain governed through institutions whose authority, resources, and digital capacities are distributed across levels of government. This study examines how multilevel governance shapes metropolitan innovation through institutional coordination and how digital transformation can strengthen that relationship. A structured qualitative literature review was conducted using peer-reviewed articles, scholarly works, policy reports on multilevel governance, metropolitan governance, public-sector innovation, knowledge transfer, and digital transformation. Sources were identified through predefined keywords, screened for relevance and credibility, coded thematically, compared across sources, and synthesized across governance, coordination, knowledge, digital, and innovation dimensions. The synthesis indicates that metropolitan innovation is not primarily constrained by the availability of technology, but by fragmented authority, inconsistent policy, uneven institutional capacity, limited knowledge transfer, and weak interoperability. Institutional coordination emerges as the central linking mechanism: multilevel governance establishes the distribution of authority; coordination aligns roles, policies, resources, and knowledge; and digital transformation provides infrastructure for information sharing and service integration. The study develops an integrated framework in which innovation replication is treated as an adaptive learning process involving knowledge transfer, institutional alignment, governance capacity, implementation, evaluation, and feedback. The framework implies that Indonesian metropolitan policy should prioritize functional coordination, shared data infrastructure, adaptive capacity building, and mechanisms for scaling innovations across jurisdictions.

Keywords:

Read the Full Text

The full text of this article is available as PDF. Version of record published in Vol. 18 No. 2 (2026).

Open PDF

References

35 references
  1. Ansell, C., & Gash, A. (2008). Collaborative Governance in Theory and Practice. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 18(4), 543–571. https://doi.org/10.1093/jopart/mum032
  2. Artioli, F., & Le Galès, P. (2025). Metropolitan Governance As Organised Anarchy: The Case of the Paris Region. Cities, 158, 105607. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2024.105607
  3. Bowen, G. A. (2009). Document Analysis as a Qualitative Research Method. Qualitative Research Journal, 9(2), 27–40. https://doi.org/10.3316/QRJ0902027
  4. BPS-Statistics Indonesia. (2026, May 29). Indonesia Metropolitan Statistical Areas 2024. BPS-Statistics Indonesia. https://www.bps.go.id/en/publication/2026/05/29/61f2317887bfbf98ce596e5c/indonesia-metropolitan-statistical-areas-2024.html
  5. Cinar, E., Simms, C., & Trott, P. (2023). Collaborative Public Sector Innovation: An Analysis of Italy, Japan, and Turkey. Governance, 36(2), 379–400. https://doi.org/10.1111/gove.12673
  6. de Vries, H., Bekkers, V., & Tummers, L. (2016). Innovation in the Public Sector: A Systematic Review and Future Research Agenda. Public Administration, 94(1), 146–166. https://doi.org/10.1111/padm.12209
  7. Farhan, A. (2023). Inovasi Pelayanan Publik pada Pemerintah Daerah di Indonesia [Public Service Innovations in Indonesia Local Government]. Matra Pembaruan, 7(2), 111–123. https://doi.org/10.21787/mp.7.2.2023.111-123
  8. Firman, T. (2014). Inter-Local-Government Partnership for Urban Management in Decentralizing Indonesia: From Below or Above? Kartamantul (Greater Yogyakarta) and Jabodetabek (Greater Jakarta) Compared. Space and Polity, 18(3), 215–232. https://doi.org/10.1080/13562576.2014.959252
  9. Galvin, P. (2019). Local Government, Multilevel Governance, and Cluster-Based Innovation Policy: Economic Cluster Strategies in Canada’s City Regions. Canadian Public Administration, 62(1), 122–150. https://doi.org/10.1111/capa.12314
  10. Hilmawan, R., Aprianti, Y., Yudaruddin, R., Anggraini Bintoro, R. F., Suharsono, Fitrianto, Y., & Wahyuningsih, N. (2023). Public Sector Innovation in Local Government and Its Impact on Development Outcomes: Empirical Evidence in Indonesia. Heliyon, 9(12), e22833. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e22833
  11. Isik, L. (2025). Innovation Interrupted: The Gap Between Value Creation and Evaluation in the Public Sector. Government Information Quarterly, 42(3), 102035. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2025.102035
  12. Kallio, H., Pietilä, A. M., Johnson, M., & Kangasniemi, M. (2016). Systematic Methodological Review: Developing a Framework for a Qualitative Semi-structured Interview Guide. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 72(12), 2954–2965. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.13031
  13. Koschatzky, K., & Kroll, H. (2007). Which Side of the Coin? The Regional Governance of Science and Innovation. Regional Studies, 41(8), 1115–1127. https://doi.org/10.1080/00343400701530857
  14. Kurniyanta, A., Nuzula, N. F., Fahrudi, A. N. L. I., & Astuti, E. S. (2026). Developing a Model of Innovation Capability and Digital Transformation in Indonesia’s Public Sector: The Role of Leadership and It Governance. Cogent Business & Management, 13(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2026.2637243
  15. Mahpudin. (2022). Inovasi Pelayanan Publik: Pengalaman dari Kota Cilegon, Indonesia [Public Service Innovation: An Explanation From Cilegon City, Indonesia]. Matra Pembaruan, 6(2), 107–117. https://doi.org/10.21787/mp.6.2.2022.107-117
  16. Matkin, D. S. T., & Frederickson, H. G. (2009). Metropolitan Governance: Institutional Roles and Interjurisdictional Cooperation. Journal of Urban Affairs, 31(1), 45–66. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9906.2008.00428.x
  17. Meijer, A., & Bolívar, M. P. R. (2015). Governing the Smart City: A Review of the Literature on Smart Urban Governance. International Review of Administrative Sciences, 82(2), 392–408. https://doi.org/10.1177/0020852314564308
  18. Mergel, I., Edelmann, N., & Haug, N. (2019). Defining Digital Transformation: Results From Expert Interviews. Government Information Quarterly, 36(4), 101385. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2019.06.002
  19. Miao, J. T., & Vasconcelos, D. de O. (2026). Who Govern Innovation Districts? A Grounded Investigation Through the Lens of Jurisdictions. Urban Affairs Review, 62(5), 1476–1507. https://doi.org/10.1177/10780874251413124
  20. Mora, L., Gerli, P., Ardito, L., & Messeni Petruzzelli, A. (2023). Smart City Governance From an Innovation Management Perspective: Theoretical Framing, Review of Current Practices, and Future Research Agenda. Technovation, 123, 102717. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.technovation.2023.102717
  21. Moser-Plautz, B., & Schmidthuber, L. (2023). Digital Government Transformation as an Organizational Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic. Government Information Quarterly, 40(3), 101815. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2023.101815
  22. Nonaka, I., & Takeuchi, H. (1995). The Knowledge-Creating Company: How Japanese Companies Create the Dynamics of Innovation. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780195092691.001.0001
  23. OECD. (2019). Enhancing Innovation Capacity in City Government. OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/f10c96e5-en
  24. O’Sullivan, E., Rassel, G., Berner, M., & Taliaferro, J. (2016). Research Methods for Public Administrators. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315563534
  25. Pittaway, J. J., & Montazemi, A. R. (2020). Know-How to Lead Digital Transformation: The Case of Local Governments. Government Information Quarterly, 37(4), 101474. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2020.101474
  26. Rogers, E. M. (2003). Diffusion of Innovations (5th ed.). Simon and Schuster.
  27. Savory, C. (2009). Building Knowledge Translation Capability Into Public-Sector Innovation Processes. Technology Analysis & Strategic Management, 21(2), 149–171. https://doi.org/10.1080/09537320802625223
  28. Scupola, A., & Mergel, I. (2022). Co-production in Digital Transformation of Public Administration and Public Value Creation: The Case of Denmark. Government Information Quarterly, 39(1), 101650. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2021.101650
  29. Sotarauta, M., & Kautonen, M. (2007). Co-evolution of the Finnish National and Local Innovation and Science Arenas: Towards a Dynamic Understanding of Multi-level Governance. Regional Studies, 41(8), 1085–1098. https://doi.org/10.1080/00343400701292284
  30. Thabit, S., Degkwitz, T., Fadmastuti, M., & Mora, L. (2026). Decentralisation in Public Sector Data Platforms: A Pathway to Enhancing Public Value? Government Information Quarterly, 43(3), 102149. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2026.102149
  31. Torfing, J., Sørensen, E., & Røiseland, A. (2019). Transforming the Public Sector Into an Arena for Co-Creation: Barriers, Drivers, Benefits, and Ways Forward. Administration & Society, 51(5), 795–825. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095399716680057
  32. Waheduzzaman, W. (2026). Understanding Post-COVID Public Sector Innovation: A Systematic Review of Concepts, Antecedents, Outcomes, Constraints, and Theoretical Perspectives. Administrative Sciences, 16(2), 88. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci16020088
  33. Wang, Y., Sun, X., Xiong, W., & Onishi, M. (2026). Beyond Technology: Exploring Public Value Creation Mechanisms and Outcomes in Platform-to-Government Data Sharing. Government Information Quarterly, 43(2), 102129. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2026.102129
  34. Wardhana, A. F. G., & Huda, N. (2022). Relasi Kewenangan Pemerintah Pusat dan Pemerintah Daerah dalam Penataan Kawasan Metropolitan Jabodetabek-Punjur. Jurnal Hukum Ius Quia Iustum, 29(3), 494–515. https://doi.org/10.20885/iustum.vol29.iss3.art2
  35. Wijaya, A. F., Lestari, M., Sari, M. K., & Ferdiandinata, R. (2026). Public Sector Innovation in Smart Cities: A Framework of Ambidextrous AI Governance. Jurnal Ilmu Pengetahuan dan Teknologi Komputer, 11(3), 765–774. https://doi.org/10.33480/jitk.v11i3.7672

Copyright & Open Access License

Copyright (c) 2026 Author(s). This article is licensed under CC Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0.