Building a partnership for social service delivery in Indonesia: state and faith‐based organisations

Abstract

Contrary to the secularisation processes in modernisation theory, religions and faith‐based organisations (FBOs) are thriving in contemporary Indonesia. Strongly supported by community members, religious organisations have begun to extend their services beyond the traditional areas of education and health to operate in disaster relief and poverty alleviation programmes. These FBOs have been offering assistance to the disadvantaged whose needs have not been adequately met by the state. Social programmes run by the FBOs are an important safety net at the grass‐roots level in Indonesia; how to effectively coordinate and offer such services are important social policy issues. This paper will show that the Indonesian Government is keen to remain the key provider of social services and often perceives the services of FBOs as a threat. Some recent state policies to regulate the funding sources of Islamic organisations have posed a significant logistical challenge for their future operation. In addition, theological differences across various religious groups have made it difficult to form inclusive and extensive partnerships among the FBOs, who tend to compete with each another resulting in rivalry. These socio‐political contexts have limited the formation of effective partnerships for offering coordinated social services.

Accelerating Islamic charities in Indonesia:zakat,sedekahand the immediacy of social media

“…Dompet Dhuafa is a private philanthropic organization aimed at collecting funds from Indonesian Muslims and distributing them to the needy and indigent. In contrast to the traditional model of Islamic charity distribution, Dompet Dhuafa uses the donations for particular activities such as establishing health clinics for the poor and economic community development programmes (Latief 2010b, 517-521;Sakai 2010Sakai , 2012. Dompet Dhuafa's model of Islamic charity has contributed to the booming activities of Islamic charities in the post-Suharto era.…”

Old Money—The History of Giving in Asia

“…So does its follower base of wealthy and/or ethnic Chinese Indonesians. 202,203 The religious backdrop does not always promote a positive environment for social services. Under the authoritarian Suharto government, many religious impulses were steered toward containing communism and cracking down on dissident political voices.…”

“…204,205 Also, giving donations to non-religious NGOs-even those for social services-is less commonplace, and donating to non-Islamic organizations is even shunned. 206 Religious and nonreligious NGOs developed under Dutch colonial rule. 207 The Dutch government intervened little in private matters related to zakat, unintentionally allowing for the emergence of Islamic associations.…”

“…215,216 He co-opted religious activities for his agenda, as noted above, and limited other functions. 217,218 Hans Antlöv, Rustam Ibrahim, and Peter van Tuijl aptly summarize the position of civil society in the New Order era:…”

Pragmatic Philanthropy

“…Under the authoritarian Suharto government, many religious impulses were steered toward containing communism and cracking down on dissident political voices. 204,205 Also, giving donations to non-religious NGOs-even those for social services-is less commonplace, and donating to non-Islamic organizations is even shunned. 206 Religious and nonreligious NGOs developed under Dutch colonial rule.…”