Beyond Participation: Structural and Cultural Barriers to Women’s Decision-Making in Local Disaster Governance
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.26905/pjiap.v11i2.17061Keywords:
Cultural barriers, Disaster risk reduction, Gender governance, Structural barriers,, Women's participationAbstract
This study examines the structural and cultural barriers limiting women’s access to local-level disaster management decision-making in Bantul Regency, Indonesia. Using a qualitative case study approach, the study involved eleven informants from Wukirsari, Canden, and Trirenggo Villages and the Bantul Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD), and collected data through in-depth interviews, observation, and document analysis. The findings indicate that women’s access to decision-making is shaped by male-dominated formal authority structures, the concentration of women in administrative, logistical, and other supporting roles, and cultural assumptions that associate operational disaster response with masculinity. Work and caregiving responsibilities further constrain women’s availability, while social expectations regarding women’s domestic roles may affect their opportunities to participate in public disaster governance. The findings also show that women’s involvement in disaster-related activities does not necessarily translate into access to strategic positions or meaningful decision-making influence. Document analysis did not identify specific affirmative mechanisms to strengthen women’s representation in strategic disaster decision-making within the institutional and program documents examined. Drawing on Gender Governance and Feminist Institutionalism, the study concludes that women’s participation in local disaster governance remains more procedural than substantive. Strengthening substantive participation requires institutional mechanisms that expand women’s access to strategic positions and decision-making forums, alongside gender-responsive participation arrangements and efforts to address gendered social norms.
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