Indonesian NGOs use the Internet strategically in rural development

Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Indonesia are using the Internet strategically to shape the future of rural development. Rural NGOs have been using the internet to access and disseminate information, and build online communities.

A study from the ManchesterInstitute of Innovation Research, in the UK, examines the role of NGOs, andtheir use of the Internet, for rural development in Indonesia.

The research begins bytracing the negative impacts of government–sponsored rural development sincethe 1960s. The government introduced high-yielding seeds, subsidisedfertilisers and irrigation systems as part of a ‘green revolution’ to improvefood security. It also built roads, health centres, schools and village halls.But such agricultural intensification resulted in infertile land, peasantvulnerability, an increase in rice imports and the destruction of much of ruralsociety. Today, Indonesian farmers are poor and agricultural land remainsinfertile, and is too easily converted into industrial estates and urbanhousing.

The Indonesian governmentthinks of rural reform in terms of ‘development’. NGOs, on the other hand, areconcerned with ‘empowerment’ of rural communities – protecting the environment,elevating standards of living and reclaiming the social, political and economicrights of farmers to decide their own life. For instance, the advocacy group Yayasan Duta Awam(YDA), which has been using the Internet since 1998, has developed three keyactivities: participatory research, dialogue and grassroots media.

Through empirical observationof a number of Indonesian NGOs, this study reveals a five-stage process throughwhich they adopt the Internet: awareness building, attitude formation,adoption, adaptation, appropriation. The study also maps five different ways inwhich the Internet is used strategically and politically by Indonesian NGOs, tosupport the work of civil society:

• collaboration –within and between organisations
• mobilisation –recruiting participants for rallies, protests and volunteer work, through campaignsand ‘calls for action’
• empowerment anddevelopment – using the Internet as an information source to offer alternativeopinions and perspectives on the development agenda
• research andpublication – increasing both the information available to NGOs and theirdissemination of publications to wide audiences quickly and cheaply
• advocacy and monitoring – to understand and shape publicopinion.

The data presented revealsthat the Internet is more than a communication tool; it has become a source ofpower in society. The research concludes that:

• Internet use hascontributed to a widening of organisational perspectives in Indonesia – allowingNGOs to work closely with farmers and to develop critical perspectives towardstraditional rural development practises. 
• NGOs need tobecome active participants in the Internet world but they often prioritise realengagement with communities.
• Active criticismof government-led rural development is not easy for many organisations.National networking between them is therefore important.
• Further thoughtand study is needed to understand how the Internet can be used to increase NGOsstrategic intervention in rural sector reform.