This midline study examines how collaboration between civil society organization (CSO) networks and subnational governments has evolved following SKALA’s support to strengthen gender equality, disability, and social inclusion (GEDSI) mainstreaming. Conducted by The SMERU Research Institute in 2026, the qualitative rapid assessment explores the contextual factors that have enabled or constrained collaboration, as well as how CSO networks have applied and expanded their capacities after receiving SKALA’s capacity-strengthening support. The study takes place in the same six SKALA partner provinces covered in the baseline: Aceh, North Kalimantan, Gorontalo, West Nusa Tenggara, East Nusa Tenggara, and Maluku.
Equitable and inclusive development requires planning and budgeting processes that meaningfully involve diverse stakeholders, particularly women, persons with disabilities, and other vulnerable groups. CSOs play a central role in representing marginalized communities and advocating for inclusive development (Munene & Thakhathi, 2017; Van Wessel et al., 2020). Yet they must balance dual roles as government watchdogs and collaborative partners—an inherently challenging position in contexts marked by power asymmetries and institutional constraints (Ansell & Gash, 2008; Emerson et al., 2012; Van Wessel et al., 2020).
The 2024 baseline study, conducted by SMERU, found relatively high levels of trust and confidence between CSOs and subnational governments. However, limited government commitment, capacity gaps, and funding constraints hindered sustained collaboration (Bachtiar et al., 2025). CSOs were able to participate in formal planning and consultation processes, but their ability to translate participation into substantive policy influence remained limited.
The baseline also underscored the importance of CSO networks in strengthening collaboration. In response, SKALA enhanced their planning and budgeting capacities and supported the development of Guidelines on the Participation of Communities and Vulnerable Groups in RKPD and Thematic Musrenbang, which were enacted by the Ministry of Home Affairs. These guidelines aim to foster more meaningful and inclusive participation in development planning processes.
The midline study now assesses how these initiatives have shaped collaboration, identifying promising practices, emerging outcomes, and persistent challenges to inform actionable recommendations for SKALA Phase 2.
This study aims to:
- Generate rapid, practical, and evidence-based insights into how collaboration between CSO networks and subnational governments has evolved since the baseline.
- Examine the contextual factors that have enabled or constrained the collaboration between CSO networks and subnational governments across different settings.
- Inform practical and actionable recommendations for SKALA, subnational governments, and CSO networks to strengthen collaboration during the remaining implementation period and inform the design of SKALA Phase 2.
The midline study is designed as a qualitative study to support a rapid assessment of changes in collaboration between CSO networks and subnational governments following SKALA-driven initiatives. To ensure that the midline findings are comparable and methodologically sound, the qualitative inquiry assesses changes in the collaboration dynamics against established baseline benchmarks. This midline study uses the baseline findings as the primary reference point to assess changes over time and focuses on CSO networks that participated in SKALA-supported capacity-strengthening activities. The data collection methods comprise desk study, key informant interviews, focus group discussions, and a validation workshop.
