Decentralization of marine fisheries management in Indonesia: A review with an economic perspective

Abstract

An examination is made of the performance of deconcentration of authority in Indonesia in the marine and fisheries sector. Findings indicate that, although there is a shift in national development strategy to be more equal among regions, the majority of deconcentrated budget is still allocated to the Western part of Indonesia. The Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries classifies the program of marine and fisheries into 6 types, namely: a) Monitoring, Control and Surveillance; b) Fisheries Resource Management and Development; c) Conservation and Rehabilitation of Marine and Fisheries Resources; d) Spatial Management; e) Research and Technology Development; and, f) Human Resources Development. Of these, allocation of the deconcentrated budget is dominant in b). Data show that the central government is still mostly focussing on promoting the economic benefit of marine and fisheries development in regional areas. This also reflects that the economic aspect of fisheries development is the main concern of central government. To strengthen the decentralization of the marine and fisheries development and management responsibility, the central government should be consistent in sharing the authority with the local government and improving the legal framework and policy process with respect to the spirit of decentralization. Also, at the local level, the capacity of the local government must be enhanced to meet the principles of decentralization - accountability, efficiency and effectiveness. Finally, mutual trust among the central, provincial and municipal government is necessary for better decentralization of the management of the marine and fisheries sector.