Cross-Sectoral Coordination Towards a Child-Friendly City in Indonesia: A Critical Study of Tanjungpinang City

Cross-Sectoral Coordination Towards a Child-Friendly City in Indonesia: A Critical Study of Tanjungpinang City

Diah Siti Utari, Agus Sukristyanto, Achluddin Ibnu Rochim
Faculty of Social and Political Science, University of Tujuh Belas Agustus 1945 Surabaya, Indonesia 

ABSTRACT

Child-friendly city policies exist to accelerate the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The fulfillment of children’s rights and the protection of children from all forms of violence and discrimination is a highly complex issue and has a wide scope. For that, the government needs to involve actors outside of the public sector. Child-friendly city policies in the collaborative governance of Indonesia involve Penta-helix elements among government, civil society, academics, the business sector, and mass media. This study aims to analyze the coordination between public and non-public sector organizations in achieving cross-sectoral collaboration goals. This study conducts a critical review of relevant literature and utilizes Tanjungpinang City which received the Middle category child-friendly city award, as a case study. According to the findings of this study, tiered coordination was carried out in support of child-friendly city policies. The key factors of cross-sectoral coordination consist of cooperation, commitment, common goals, and the absence of sectoral egos.

Keywords: child-friendly, collaborative governance, coordination, non-public sector

INTRODUCTION

Children have massive future potential for nation-building. To ensure that children have the best possible chance of growing and developing, every nation should pay close attention to the rights of children. One of them is by providing a safe and comfortable open “space” to help children realize their full potential and abilities. The Indonesian government adopted and ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child through the Decree of the President of the Republic of Indonesia Number 36 of 1990 concerning ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. In 2005, the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection (MoWECP) of the Republic of Indonesia initiated the first step toward incorporating children’s rights into the development process by developing the Child-Friendly District/City Policies [1]. The child-friendly city policies reflect the commitment of the government to establishing child protection initiatives. As stated in the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia, specifically in article 28B paragraph (2), which states that every child has the right to survival, growth, and development as well as the right to protection from abuse and discrimination. According to this article, the State must be able to ensure that citizens are protected, especially vulnerable children.

The fulfillment of children’s rights and child protection are extremely complex issues. This issue covers a wide scope, beginning with policy implementation, and program preparation to activity implementation. The state cannot rely solely on the public sector for its needs. To collaborate effectively in the ideal order to accomplish child-friendly city policies, the state needs to involve non-government organizations. This is reinforced by the fact that several countries have focused on the opportunities provided by the Convention on the Rights of the Child to develop local governance systems. It will facilitate for local governments to form collaborations with stakeholders to build a long-term child-friendly city system [2]. In this case, the Indonesian government encourages collaborative governance by involving elements of the Penta-helix, which includes government, community, academic research, the business sector, and the mass media. It demonstrates the mutual involvement of the public and non-public sectors in optimizing the implementation of child-friendly cities.

The urgency of this collaboration is based on the limited capacity and expertise of the government in solving public issues. As a result, the government should initiate a collaborative forum involving non-state actors [3]. In relation to women’s empowerment and child protection, the Indonesian government has established a Public Participation Forum for the Welfare of Women and Children (abbreviated as PUSPA Forum). This collaborative forum was formed at the city, provincial and central levels. This forum combines members from various organizations, community organizations, the business sector, the mass media, and academic researchers. Therefore, a cross-sectoral coordination mechanism is needed for all programs and activities. Resolving complex issues necessarily requires cross-sectoral coordination and policy integration, which leads to improved outcomes [4]. However, coordination challenges are frequently affected by differences in interests among sectoral actors. Indeed, cross-sectoral collaboration can help to strengthen the organization, resulting in better policy design and more efficient implementation.

The government runs through agencies and agency coordination. As a result, “inter-agency collaboration” is required to achieve many government goals. It is a characteristic of a set of organizations that interact with one another that they can be loosely or strongly connected. Tightly connected organizations have a high level of coordination, dense communication, protocols establishing authority relationships and terms of collaboration, and established ties between individuals in both organizations. Another aspect of organizational success that is undeniably important is internal communication, coordination, and collaboration. The ultimate success or failure of an organizational project will be determined by the activities of individuals and units scattered across the organization [5]. We define coordination more accurately as the additional information processing that occurs when numerous, connected actors pursue goals that a single actor pursuing the same goals would not execute [6].

This research conducts a case study of the city of Tanjungpinang to examine the pattern of coordination that can support the implementation of child-friendly city policies in Indonesia. Tanjungpinang is a city that has received the Middle-level Child-Friendly City award 3 times in a row. This study aims to analyze coordination between public and non-public sector organizations in achieving cross-sectoral collaboration goals. The results of this study are expected to contribute to Indonesia in optimizing the realization of child-friendly cities in each city. It can also be used as evaluation material and provide recommendations for every city that implements child-friendly city policies. Optimizing child-friendly city policies is expected to go hand in hand with increasing fulfillment of children’s rights and reducing the number of violence in any form against children.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Fulfilling children’s rights and guaranteeing the protection of children has become a joint commitment of countries in the world. Besides the Convention on the Rights of the Child, protection for children has also been sounded out in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), precisely on target 16.2: “end abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence and torture against children.” However, problems with fulfilling children’s rights and child protection are still ongoing, as well as in Indonesia. Therefore, this problem needs to be examined from various perspectives in the field of research.

According to the perspective of Public Administration, in realizing a child-friendly city, cooperation between the government and non-public elements is needed to create a child-friendly environment. This relates to the goals of the 16th Suistanable Development Goal, namely Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions. Collaborative governance is a solution as well as a challenge in realizing a child-friendly city. In terms of decision-making and problem-solving, collaborative governance includes both formal and informal relationships. By encouraging collaboration between the public, private, and community sectors, conventional government policy processes can be incorporated into broader policy processes [7]. This is what is expected in the implementation of the Child Friendly Cities Policy in Indonesia which is the focus of discussion in this research.

In collaborative governance, coordination becomes a crucial element to be able to build governance that is effective, efficient and on target. Normatively, coordination refers to the power to move, harmonize, align, and balance particular or disparate actions so that they are all focused on the same objectives. While functionally, coordination is a task carried out to make the division of labor more efficient. For this reason, this study limits the scope of research by focusing on the coordination that exists in realizing child-friendly cities. The aim is to explore more deeply the pattern of cross-sectoral coordination.

According to previous studies, the Tanjungpinang city government goes through several stages to build a child-friendly city. These stages include preparation, planning, implementation, monitoring, evaluation, and reporting [8]. Coordination problems and a lack of mass media involvement were discovered during the implementation phase. Meanwhile, during the evaluation stage, a child-friendly city should be implemented from a lower (urban village) to a higher level. Finally, the Governor of the Riau Archipelago Province receives regular reporting from the regional head of Tanjungpinang City. However, the study’s findings indicated that the Tanjungpinang City government and other institutions have not been able to fulfill all of the indicators of a child-friendly city. As a result, more research into cross-sectoral coordination in support of child-friendly city policies is required. Through cross-sectoral coordination and integration, program performance will be more optimal to build a child-friendly Indonesia. For this reason, it is necessary to identify key factors in building a coordination pattern so that the penta helix elements can move together in realizing a child-friendly city.

METHODS

1. Case Study Area

Tanjungpinang City is an autonomous city which is part of the Riau Archipelago Province. Based on modified data obtained from the official website of the Department of Communication and Informatics (abbreviated as Diskominfo) of Tanjungpinang City, the number of populations in this city who are including the children group (Table 1) reaches 33% of the total population of Tanjungpinang City.

Table 1.
Total Population of Tanjungpinang City, Category of Children as of June 2021

Source: Data modification of Diskominfo of Tanjungpinang City (2021)

This city is one of the cities in Indonesia that has implemented a child-friendly city program. The city which has a population of around 220 thousand people, has received a national-level award for child-friendly cities from the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection. Tanjungpinang has received the title of Middle Category Child-Friendly City for the third time in a row, from 2018 to 2021 [10]. Child-friendly city indicators are used to guide planning, implementation, and evaluation.

    B. Data Collection

This research uses a qualitative method with a case study approach. This study uses primary data and secondary data. Primary data was obtained from in-depth interviews with informants from public and non-public actors, such as the local government, local non-government organizations (NGOs), communities, the business sector, and the mass media, who implement child-friendly city policies in Tanjungpinang City. The informants included the Department of Women’s Empowerment, Child Protection and Community Empowerment (DP3APM) of Tanjungpinang City, members of PUSPA Forum and Children’s Forum of Tanjungpinang City, and SAPA (Friends of Women and Children) Volunteers. Triangulation was carried out by utilizing observational data, interviews, and documentation. Then, a critical analysis of cross-sectoral coordination in the implementation of child-friendly city policies in Tanjungpinang was conducted. Meanwhile, secondary data were obtained from national regulations, local regulations, official websites, open source, and articles relevant to child-friendly coordination and child-friendly city policies in Indonesia.

RESULT AND DISCUSSION

    A. The Policies of a Child-Friendly City and Collaborative Governance in Indonesia

A child-friendly city is a local government system dedicated to realizing children’s rights as articulated in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Local governments that implement this system integrate children’s voices, needs, priorities, and rights into policies, programs, and public decisions [11]. According to Ministerial Regulation No. 2 of 2009, as amended by Ministerial Regulation No. 11 of 2011, Child-Friendly City is a Regency/City development system that integrates the commitment and resources of the government, the community, and the business sector in policies, programs, and activities to fulfill human rights comprehensively and sustainably. To achieve Child-Friendly Cities, several factors must be considered, including partnerships, policies and budgets, roles and socialization, and commitment [12].

To support the child-friendly city initiative by UNICEF, the Indonesian government designed a public policy to transform the child-friendly city initiative into a development system in Indonesia. This policy is a child-friendly city policy. According to the Regulation of the State Minster for Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection (MoWECP) Number 13 of 2011, the Child-Friendly City Policy has five clusters to be accommodated by local governments in the development of their districts/cities. The five child-friendly city policy clusters include:

1. Civil rights and Freedom;
2. Environment and Alternative Care
3. Basic Health and Welfare;
4. Education, Use of Leisure Time and Cultural activities; and
5. Special Protection of Children.

After reviewing the five clusters, it can be said that this child-friendly city policy has a wide scope. Therefore, collaboration between various fields is required to mutually optimize the implementation of child-friendly city policies. To build a sustainable child-friendly city development system, elements of the government, private sector, and civil society should collaborate to fulfill children’s rights through the five clusters mentioned.

The term collaborative governance is well-known in the field of public administration. Collaborative governance can be defined as decision-making and public policy management processes and structures that involve people constructively across the boundaries of public institutions, levels of government, and/or public, private, and civic spaces to achieve public goals. On the other hand, it is impossible to achieve the goal if it is carried out by only one sector [13]. In this case, the government also involves the community, academic researchers, the business sector, and the media. Even though these stakeholders have opposing interests, they must remember that they share a common goal that necessitates collaboration. The benefits of collaborative governance include easier access to resources, overcoming shared risks, efficiency, coordination, learning for the organization, and moral imperatives [14].
A child-friendly city based on collaborativegovernance requires continuous coordination so that the fulfillment of children’s rights indicators can increase. To facilitate the coordination flow, the Public Participation Forum for the Welfare of Women and Children (PUSPA Forum) was formed to anticipate public issues related to women and children. This forum consists of elements of the Penta-helix collaborative governance initiated by the Minister of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection. Tanjungpinang City has done the same. The Tanjungpinang City PUSPA Forum was formed by 33 administrators from various organizations to carry out the main tasks and functions outlined in the decree of the Mayor of Tanjungpinang City. The Tanjungpinang City PUSPA Forum is divided into 2 areas, namely Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection. Of course, the field of child protection is in line with the policy objectives of child-friendly cities. This sector was formed to provide input, suggestions, and considerations for the smooth implementation of community participation in the field of fulfilling children’s rights and special protection for children.
The PUSPA Forum was formed at the central level, provincial level, and district/city level. PUSPA forums at the district/city level must carry out coordination tasks by those stipulated in the ministerial regulation. Coordination is critical for the planned cross-sectoral collaboration. Cross-sectoral collaboration goals will be accomplished more quickly with effective and efficient coordination. Before discussing more deeply about the coordination flow, it is necessary to know that even though the PUSPA Forum has two fields, this study focuses on the field of child protection, which is relevant to child-friendly city policies. The coordination and synergy between the PUSPA Forum and the government can be illustrated in Fig.1.

The Minister of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection served as the coordinator of the central-level PUSPA Forum whose task was to foster and provide capacity building, and institutional strengthening to the PUSPA Forum. The Minister must also advise the Governor, who serves as the provincial coordinator of the PUSPA Forum. Furthermore, the Governor is tasked with fostering and providing capacity building and institutional strengthening to the provincial-level PUSPA Forum. In this case, the Provincial PUSPA Forum needs to coordinate with the Governor to consider the implementation of community participation, which can assist in the fulfillment of children’s rights. The governor is also responsible for encouraging the growth of the PUSPA Forum in districts/cities, including in terms of child protection. Furthermore, the Regent/mayor as the coordinator of the PUSPA Forum at the district/city level is tasked with increasing capacity and institutional strengthening for the City PUSPA Forum. The City PUSPA Forum has to coordinate with the Regent/Mayor and also with the provincial-level PUSPA Forum.

This tiered coordination flow is also applied in reporting special cases. As has been determined, the coordination of the PUSPA Forum on the district/city level includes coordination at the district/city-regional level, field coordination, and special coordination. District/city level coordination is scheduled at least once a year to strengthen communication, cooperation, and discuss child protection agendas at the district/city level. Field coordination is carried out at least 1 time in 4 months to discuss program activities according to their respective fields. Meanwhile, special coordination is carried out if there are specific child protection problems that require quick and appropriate problem-solving. As previously stated, this special coordination is also carried out in stages.

PUSPA Forum of Tanjungpinang City is an independent forum established by the mayor under the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment, Child Protection, and Community Empowerment (DP3APM). The forum that was also formed to accelerate the fulfillment of children’s rights is the Tanjungpinang City Children’s Forum. However, based on research results, the Tanjungpinang City Children’s Forum is more active and focused on carrying out activities that support the implementation of child-friendly city policies. On social media, it is also completely obvious that the Tanjungpinang City Children’s Forum is becoming more aggressive in generating initiatives that address the most recent issues that concern children. One of the forms of coordination of the Tanjungpinang city children’s forum with the government can be shown through the 2022 Children’s Musrenbang (Development Planning Deliberation) activities as can be seen in Fig.2.

Meanwhile, the PUSPA forum, as a government partner, is concerned with the protection of women and children, as well as the fulfillment of women and children’s rights to prosperity. However, the results of the research show that the coordination of the PUSPA forum for child protection has not yet become a concern.

In addition, the PUSPA Forum of Tanjungpinang City has collaborated to accelerate the realization of children’s rights in Tanjungpinang. Puspa Forum held activities that could increase the capacity of the Children’s Forum. One strategy is to organize a workshop on “Becoming a Generation Z Researcher” that is specifically attended by representatives of children’s forums from various sub-districts in Tanjungpinang City. These activities can be seen in Fig.3.

Cross-sector collaboration that promotes the implementation of child-friendly cities in Tanjungpinang City is not limited to the PUSPA Forum. Several communities and non-governmental organizations volunteer to develop programs that assist the government in executing its duties. The government must involve actors outside of the public sector. One of them is a SAPA volunteer who has collaborated with the Department of Population and Civil Registration of Tanjungpinang City to assist the community to create child identity cards (KIA). This type of collaboration can serve as motivation for the PUSPA forum to expand its capacity as a government partner.

   B.  Key Factor of Cross-Sectoral Coordination

Cross-sectoral coordination is critical in addressing the complex challenges of guaranteeing children’s rights and protection. Coordination is the continuous process of combining, balancing, and prioritizing goals from various policy domains, such as economic, social, and cultural goals [15]. Coordinated efforts across relevant ministries, public sector agencies, and non-public sector organizations are required for the most efficient policy approach. However, creating coordinated cross-sectoral collaboration on a public issue is also very challenging because most governments, government agencies, and non-governmental organizations have been so neglected that cross-sectoral coordination is difficult to achieve. However, constructing coordinated cross-sectoral collaboration on a public issue is also challenging as most governments, government agencies, and non-governmental organizations already have their regulations, causing cross-sectoral coordination difficult to achieve. Coordination needs to be based on the clear roles and responsibilities of each stakeholder. As a result, each sector can develop joint planning instruments that are more effective and aligned with the goals of cross-sectoral collaboration for both the government and non-government sectors in order to produce positive results.

Based on the analysis, a classification of policy coordination adapted from research by Vitola & Senfelde (2015) can be proposed in Fig. 4.

The coordination can be divided into administrative coordination and policy coordination. Administrative coordination is functional, which is carried out to ensure cooperation within and between organizations operates properly. Meanwhile, policy coordination is strategic, meaning that this coordination determines a series of priorities and formulates strategies to implement consistent and sustainable policy development [16]. In cross-sectoral collaboration, administrative coordination and policy coordination must be balanced to achieve the goal of collaboration.

Policy coordination is classified as horizontal, which leads to cross-sectoral coordination, and vertical, which leads to multi-level coordination. Vertical policy coordination focuses on the relationship between levels of government from policy making to policy implementation. This ensures that policies are transformed into organizational responsibilities and have implications for the budget. When reviewing the coordination chart in fig.1 it can be seen that vertical coordination is indicated by coordination between the PUSPA Forum at the district/city level, the PUSPA Forum at the Provincial level, and the PUSPA Forum at the Central level. While horizontal coordination can occur both internally and externally in the PUSPA forum. Internal coordination determines the performance of the formed independent forum. External coordination refers to the pattern of interaction between the public and non-public sectors through programs and joint activities.

The results of the discussion identified four key factors of cross-sectoral coordination. The first key factor in cross-sectoral coordination is cooperation. Cooperation in coordinating between sectors needs to be carried out by supporting each other in implementing policy development and implementing activities. It should be remembered that both internal and external coordination cannot be carried out by one party alone. Therefore, each sector needs to have the awareness to work together by sharing information, experience, and capabilities to be able to meet common goals. The government, business world, society, academia, and the mass media are doing their respective roles to be utilized in accelerating the implementation of child-friendly cities. In this case, the government is the regulator and controller, the business sector is the enabler, the community is the accelerator, academics are the drafters, and the media is the expander.

The second key factor is a commitment. A concrete form of the government’s commitment with non-governmental elements is a must so that the goal of a child-friendly city policy to create a child-friendly Indonesia in 2030 can be achieved. For this reason, this public policy is a commitment for all levels of government. Regional government commitment can be seen from the normative juridical aspect in the form of relevant policy products starting from the 1945 Constitution, laws, presidential regulations, ministerial regulations to regional leadership regulations through regional regulations, mayor/regent regulations and mayor/regent decrees as legal legality implementation of the policy. Each sector must be committed to building communication with all parties in a transparent manner so that joint evaluations can be carried out to create breakthroughs and innovations in implementing child-friendly city policies in the future.

The third key factor is common goals. Cross-sector strategic coordination is a strategic effort carried out by the government to achieve harmony, harmony and integration in planning and carrying out tasks. Even though they come from different organizations, the common goals of cross-sectoral collaboration need to be defined and agreed upon from the start. The purpose of this collaboration will become a guide in planning programs and carrying out joint activities. Coordination will be difficult without setting joint collaboration goals because each sector will only lead to the goals of each organization. The Tanjungpinang city PUSPA Forum consists of 33 different organizations, so when in the forum each member no longer prioritizes the interests of each organization. The common goals have to be in harmony between the forum formed and the government that formed it. The government must realize that the success of building cross-sector collaboration is not limited to forming collaborative forums, but needs to coordinate during the operation of the forum to align steps in implementing policies and provide mutual input on policy implementation.

The fourth critical factor is the absence of sectoral egos. Often sectoral egos defeat the purpose of cross-sectoral collaboration. Therefore, sectoral egoism is still the biggest obstacle to realizing cross-sectoral synergy. It can be said that the crucial key in coordination or synergy is eliminating sectoral egos. Instead of providing solutions to policies, what happens is that they overlap one another. Although until now there has been no concrete solution to sectoral ego problems that often occur in cross-sector collaboration, coordination needs to be carried out continuously to find agreement. Efforts to eliminate sectoral practices can be carried out by aligning the vision and goals as well as the harmony played by the collaboration leaders. The clear mandate of authority from each sector will also eliminate sectoral egos.

    C. Adaptation and Innovation to the Coordination Model

Global dynamics that are rapidly changing pose new threats to children’s rights while providing new opportunities for them to realize those rights. Therefore, the state needs to respond quickly to various dynamics so that the fulfillment of children’s rights and child protection are guaranteed.  As previously mentioned, Indonesia promotes collaborative governance in implementing child-friendly city policies. Indonesia has modeled a tiered coordination pattern to accelerate the handling of issues related to women and children through the PUSPA Forum (the Public Participation Forum for the Welfare of Women and Children). The primary objective of this forum was to equalize perceptions and strengthen collaboration in the fight against issues affecting women and children, such as human trafficking, violence, prostitution, early marriage, dropping out of school for girls, exploitation, and maternal and child mortality.

Based on a review of case studies in Tanjungpinang, the PUSPA Forum as a government partner in the field of women’s empowerment and child protection has not been optimally involved in implementing child-friendly city policies. The PUSPA Forum should be a solid team because each member has their role from the organizational institutions or agencies of the members in accordance with their respective competencies and duties. Based on its role in community institutions, each sector should be able to provide input on child-friendly city policies and anticipate violence and discrimination against children.

The PUSPA Forum is a government partner consisting of a combination of all non-public elements. The target of child-friendly city/district policies is residents with the characteristics of generation Z. The target group is very familiar with media and technology. This needs to be considered in recruiting members of the PUSPA Forum for the coming period. Although the regulations do not state the ideal number of organizations involved in a Forum. However, membership should be able to meet the classification of expertise or background groups. In order to optimize its role, at least PUSPA Forum must have members from the community and academics who are engaged in policies on child protection. This will make coordination across sectors easier.

Coordination plays an important role in cross-sectoral collaboration. Good coordination between the public sector and the non-public sector is reflected in the achievement of the common goals of this collaboration. Informal aspects such as organizational culture and social capital often play an important role in cross-sectoral policy coordination processes. The results of the research show that the government wants the PUSPA forum to be able to carry out activities independently related to women’s empowerment and child protection. However, the government must also realize that the establishment of a government partner forum goes hand in hand with a budget plan and guidance for the operation of the forum. On the other hand, organizational culture sometimes forms the perception that activities are difficult to carry out without guidance and budget from the government that forms the forum. Even though this reflects the lack of coordination between the local government and the non-public sector that has been formed.

The performance improvement of the Tanjungpinang City PUSPA forum will increase in 2022 compared to the previous year. This is seen from the awareness to start planning activities that are relevant to women’s empowerment and child protection through coordination with the public sector and other non-public sectors. Based on the results of the analysis, the challenge experienced by the PUSPA forum in fulfilling its role as a participation forum for child protection is the target group which is generation Z. For this reason, the PUSPA forum requires an increase in the capacity of administrators in terms of technology and communication to gain the trust of the target group as a forum for public participation. It requires good coordination so that each administrator from different organizations can exchange appropriate resources for child protection.

In improving cross-sectoral coordination for the development of city-friendly policies, efforts can be made to optimize the role of each party. The government has a role in making regulations, controlling, and coordinating stakeholders who contribute to child-friendly city policies. The role of local government is not only to form community participation forums and children’s forums, but also to be involved in planning, implementing, monitoring, controlling, budget allocation, and evaluating activities. Furthermore, the role of the community is as an accelerator. Society in this case can be in the form of individuals, community groups, or community organizations. This community is the link between stakeholders to help accelerate the development of cities that are suitable for children.

In the Penta helix collaboration, academics are also needed as drafters who can conduct research to identify opportunities, obstacles, and potential for developing child-friendly cities. For this reason, it is important for the academics involved to continue to increase their knowledge and capacity in line with the dynamics of relevant issues of fulfilling children’s rights and child protection. In addition, the business sector can help achieve child-friendly city policy goals through a process of sustainable business growth to provide technological and capital infrastructure that meets the needs of cross-sectors.

The last element that needs to be considered in cross-sectoral collaboration is coordinating with the mass media which acts as an expander in publicizing the implementation of child-friendly cities. Through the media, it can build social change in society and help campaign for programs to fulfill children’s rights and protect children carried out by the public sector and the non-public sector. The application of the Penta-helix concept can support the establishment of effective and efficient cross-sectoral coordination in order to create Child-Friendly Cities in Indonesia.

CONCLUSION

Fulfillment of children’s rights and child protection is a highly crucial issue for a country, considering that children are the generation that will determine the fate of a nation in the future. The government, the family, and the community all have a responsibility to make sure that children’s rights are protected, and the state must be able to instill this mindset. Through the Child-Friendly Cities Policy, the Indonesian government has demonstrated its commitment to fulfilling children’s rights and protecting children. The steps taken by the Indonesian government to accelerate the implementation of child-friendly cities through collaborative governance were quite appropriate. A Penta-helix element of government resources, the community, academics, the business sector, and the mass media are involved in this collaboration. However, the pattern of coordination is extremely crucial in this cross-sectoral collaboration. In horizontal coordination or cross-sectoral coordination, coordination occurs both internally and externally. Internal coordination determines the performance of the independent forums formed. External coordination refers to patterns of interaction between the public and non-public sectors through joint programs and activities. This collaboration will strengthen each other if internal and external coordination goes well. Important factors in cross-sectoral coordination include cooperation, commitment, common goals, and elimination of sectoral egos. Collaborative governance in the field of child protection should be further strengthened by the existence of a non-public sector forum formed directly by the government, namely the PUSPA Forum. Strengthening the role of the PUSPA forum at the city level in Indonesia needs to be emphasized in order to optimize the implementation of child-friendly city policies. Coordination in the PUSPA forum as a government partner must be improved through guidance and assistance by the government.

SUGGESTIONS

The local government of Tanjungpinang and the PUSPA forum of Tanjungpinang city should have a shared awareness to collaborate in the field of child protection.

As for suggestions given to the local government of Tanjungpinang City:

1. Local governments of Tanjungpinang City that establish participation forums as government partners have to provide continual guidance and assistance in the development of child-friendly cities.
2. The local government should provide clarity on the role of the PUSPA Forum in implementing child-friendly city policies.
3. Local governments can be more selective in recruiting PUSPA forum administrators in the future by considering the origin of the organization and expertise that will maximize the PUSPA Forum’s performance in the areas of women’s empowerment and child protection.

As for suggestions given to the PUSPA Forum of Tanjungpinang City:

1. After being appointed, PUSPA management should immediately prepare a work program that is in accordance with the vision, mission, and main tasks.
2. PUSPA management should optimize their activeness in carrying out their roles and coordinating as government partners by bringing experience and expertise from the respective organizations they represent.
3. Activity planning should be relevant to the urgency of establishing a forum as a preventive measure and handling of children’s issues.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The authors acknowledge the University of 17 Agustus 1945 (UNTAG 1945) Surabaya for their facilitation in team formation and encouragement to publish this paper. Acknowledgments are also conveyed to STISIPOL Raja Haji, the Public Participation Forum for the Welfare of Women and Children (PUSPA Forum), and the local government of Tanjungpinang City for support in the fieldwork process.

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