Questions/Answers

Nearly 2 million people live in Semarang city, Central Java. Of these, around 30 percent are aged between 15 and 39, and have a great desire for information and communication technology (ICT) solutions in their lives. This desire is reinforced by Semarang’s geography and position as the fifth-largest metropolis in Indonesia. In 2013, the local government (LG) in Semarang developed a 3-in-1 Public Information Service (Pelayanan Informasi Publik – PIP), which incorporatesan information service, a Computer Information Centre with free internet, anda complaint-handling service, within a single integrated service hub, where users can obtain LG data and information about the LG’s performance, as well as submit any public service-related complaints they may have, quickly, easily and in one place. Two years later, an online public resource – called Digitally Creative Semarang (DCS) - was incorporated into the hub.The DCStriggered rapid growth of the city’s digital community, creative industry and a range ofnew start-ups.This new resource was completed with the addition of an online gallery of local Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in 2017, to promote SME products and enable networking between businessmen/women. From the beginning, representatives from the private and public sectors,higher education and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) supported and contributed to the venture; many have continued to contribute to the present day. In addition, members of Semarang’s growing digital community actively promote the provision of good-quality services in different sectors(primarily education and tourism) via social media sites. This initiative, which is supported by a variety of different stakeholders, has heralded Semarang’s emergence as a Digitally Creative capital and the city’s ICT For Education programme. It reflects the realisation of a responsive government in meeting the needs and desires of local people, while also promoting active citizenship in calling for LG transparency and accountability.

The overall objectives of the initiative are to: 1. Provide the local population with easily-accessible and free information pertaining to public services and LG performance; 2. Enable local people to provide their own input and opinions about the delivery, availability and quality of public services directly to the LG; 3. Enable the LG to utilise the public’s input to feed into public service-related decision- and policy-making; 4. Encourage the LG to improve its performance in the delivery of public services; 5. Build and promote long-lasting partnerships with all stakeholders interested in improving public services and people’s quality of life; 6. Create a digital community, and promote economic growth and continued progress in Semarang.

The 3-in-1 PIP initiative fits within Category 2(Making institutions inclusive and ensuring participation in decision-making) as its development was intended to ensure that the LG in Semarang would operate to fulfil the needs of the city’s population. The service hub is structured in such a way as to provide people with answers to any questions they may have about LG performance and public services, as well as inviting their active involvement through a complaints channel; thisallows the government the chance to continually seek to improve its own performance and service quality. In this way, the PIP service hub emphasises two key principles: government accountability and public participation. The desire for inclusivity, which attractedthe involvement and active participation of a range of different stakeholders (from the private sector, higher education and NGOs) was the main driving force behind the hub’s development. That approach has continued throughout its several years in operation, as the service is used by a variety of people: students, businessmen and women, start-ups, women’s groups, disabled groups; and even people who live far from the city, as the 3-in-1 service is linked up to Semarang’s public transportation hub, Transemarang.

The initiative supports the realisation of the SDGs, particularly the following 2030 Agenda goals: (4)Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education This initiative provides services that assist students to improve the quality of their learning by offering them free access to a range of resources and online networks. With the aid of these resources, they can conduct web-based research as well as participate in various education-related competitions. The result has been a substantial increase in the number of students in Semarang entering such competitions within the past three years. (5)Gender equality The hub has introduced a digital SME service to support inter-business networking in Semarang, wherebusinesswomen make up a good percentage of the overall workforce. Using this resource, women have learned how to conduct online trading, utilise ICT in their business operations, develop new networks, and market their products more widely. (8) Promote sustainableeconomic growth This initiative has helped to build a culture of “entrepreneurship” among the younger generation in Semarang by enabling them to source ICT solutions. In order to support their ongoing business development, a number of information technology (IT) marketing firms, including Tokopedia and Lazzada, provide regular mentoring to these budding entrepreneurs.

Semarang is the capital of Central Java province as well as being the fifth-largest city in Indonesia, with a population of 2 million, 30 percent of whom is aged 15-39. With these demographics, the city’s residents have a great desire for information to support local education and business services, as well as to keep track of the LG’s performance in delivering those services. The 3-in-1 PIP service hub was established to enable Semarang’s population to obtain the information they need more quickly and cheaply. This original aim has seen the hub evolve to a point where it offers users insight on global development, as well as immediate practical benefits such as the free use of computers and internet, studio facilities, a free meeting-room service and, for people working in SMEs or entrepreneurs establishing their first start-ups, free promotional assistance that is available to all members of society, including the disabled. The complaint-handling service, which allows users to convey their aspirations as well as their complaints about existing public services, has helped the LG to improve its delivery of public services and be more aware of areas that need more attention.

The several different services that have been introduced via this initiativehave, among other things, offered members of society the opportunity to obtain accurate LG-related data and to submit public service-related complaints; created economic opportunities for existing and would-be businesspeople, and encouraged Semarang’s youth to develop their creative skills by developing a digitally-connected network for the city. So far, Semarang’s young people have created 88 digital communities, all of which actively make use of the hub’s facilities. These communities include groups that have begun to form their own start-up businesses, whilethe service hub has also had a positive impact on developing a more creative approach to learning for school and university students. Businesswomen, too, who work in the SME sector have also benefitted from the digital facilities that the service hub offers. They are now able to market their products online, enabling them to attract new buyers far beyond Semarang; and they are part of new online networks, which enable peer-to-peer learning and faster development to take place. Around 68 SMEs are members of these networks, and their average turnover figures have grown to between Rp. 100 million (US$7,500)and Rp. 200 million (US$15,000) per month.

The 3-in-1 PIP initiative is the only one of its kind in Indonesia due to the way in which it provides three different services within a single integrated hub - a kind of one-stop service (OSS) – that can be accessed freely and easily by the public. As previously mentioned, the 3-in-1 service hub was created primarily to meet people’s need for LG-related information together with their desire that the LG be more transparent, and that LG performance be more efficient. Emanating from the original hub is the Digitally Creative Semarang (DCS) network, an online promotional programme that is complemented by the Semarang Creative Gallery, a legal umbrella that contains a cluster of local SMEs and offers them credit with the lowest interest rates in the country. The DCS provides co-working space to support people’s interest in all things digital, and has helped to build a digital community to improve the creative industry in Semarang. In partnership with private and state-owned companies, the LG implements a whole range of activities for the city’s digital community such as development, mentoring and marketing workshops.

The 3-in-1 PIP service hub was developed in 2013, when the three services it now offers were provided separately by different Regional Technical Organisations (Organisasi Perangkat Daerah – OPD). The service hub was an original initiative developed by the Semarang city government administration, and the quality of the innovation has been recognised more than once: In 2015, the 3-in-1 service hub won an award for the Top Innovative Region (out of seven regions), which was organised by one of Indonesia’s largest media corporations, MNC Group; and then in 2016, it ended up in the Top 99 of that year’s SINOVIK awards, which is a national competition for public-service innovations established and run by Indonesia’s Ministry for State Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform (KemenPAN-RB).

The majority of the expenses for turning the idea of the service hub into reality was covered by Semarang’s LG administration, which allocated funds from its annual budget. In addition, the LG contracted national telecommunications firm PT Telkom to develop an infrastructure network and support the construction of a building to house the service hub and the DCS. The costs of the construction work were covered by two separate funding streams: The building’s first floor was built with Telkom’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds plus financial assistance from one of the hub’s higher education partners, Semarang’s Dian Nuswantoro University (Udinus), while the second floor and the DCS communication networkwere financed through the LG’s annual budget. The Business Service Division of PT Telkom Jawa Tengah provided grant aid to fund a computer lab and call centre, as well as equipment for both, through a cooperative agreement with Semarang’s Udinus University. Another contributor was Bank Jateng in Semarang, which covered the cost of a sound system for the second floor of the building. Daily operations are run by LG staff but they are assistedin the implementation of some activities by non-governmental actors, depending on their particular skills and capabilities.

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This initiative has the potential to be transferred to other contexts, given the fact that the desire for information and free ICT facilities remains very high in Indonesia, as well as other countries; especially the desire for creative support among young people and budding entrepreneurs – including a significant number of women. The service hub has already generated a great deal of interest among different stakeholders outside Semarang. It has become a reference for a total number of 129,342 visitors from regional governments across Indonesia, as well as 72 work visits by central ministries and institutions. Relevant staff from the Semarang LG have also acted as resource persons at events held at universities and in different regions. To supportthese and other requests for information about the hub, leaflets and video footage have been disseminated to interested parties, and the initiative has also been highlighted at different exhibitions, at both provincial and national levels as well as overseas. Back in Semarang, the hub has undergone further development and its services applied in various different sectors that come under the auspices of the LG, including the promotion of local tourism.

The social sustainability of this initiative is supported by the benefits it provides to the digital community in Semarang, which now encompasses 88 different groups, and employees and owners of local SMEs. As for economic sustainability, the hub’s partners - namely private-sector companies, universities and NGOs – have become its main support groups in terms of providing facilities and financial assistance. These allow forknowledge-sharing activities on digital industries, and NGO-led advocacy to ensure the continued availability of an information service, ICT facilities and complaint-handling service to motivate citizens to hold the LG to account.These groups continue to play an active role in making Semarang a digital city, by utilising ICT solutions in a variety of different sectors that attract their interest.

Since itsdevelopmentin 2013, the 3-in-1 PIP service hub has proved to be both a useful and popular resource for the local population in Semarang.The likelihood of its continuing to provide services well into the future is supported bythe strongcommitmentof officials at all levels of the LG, which has issued several regulations and provided/mobilised financial resources. • Regional Regulation No. 14/2016 on the formation and arrangement of local civil servants; Mayoral Decree No. 76/2016 on the organisational structure, duties and functions, and working procedures of Semarang’s Communications and Information Office; the provision of LG budget funds to cover the costs of hub-related activities; • Every month, Semarang’s mayor uses complaints received via the service hub as input for regional policy-making; • LG commitment has resulted in the hub’s continued development and expansion since its initial launch in 2013 as a public information centre. In 2015, the DCS was launched, to provide creative space for local people. in 2016, the LG added a Broadband Learning Centre (BLC) to enable people to learn about computers and the internet;and in 2017, space was provided to monitor local conditions to feed into service-related policy-making, and the online SME gallery was launched, to promote local products and inter-business networking;

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The initiative has been evaluated several times by KemenPAN-RB,which conducts annual assessments of LG-initiated public-service innovations as part of its efforts to motivate LGs across Indonesia to improve both the quality and delivery of public services in different sectors. Since 2015, Semarang has regularly been assessed as being one of the best LGs among KemenPAN-RB’s 59 District/City Role Models for the Implementation of Public Services. In reaching its conclusions, KemenPAN-RB evaluated each of the districts and cities under consideration according to the following six aspects: Service Standards, Service Reports, Community Satisfaction Index, Complaint Handling, Public-Service Innovation, and Infrastructure. The Semarang LG’s 3-in-1 PIP service hub and DCS have both been judged to be public-service innovations that are revolutionary in their approach.

The 3-in-1 PIP hub has proved a valuable resource for various groups in Semarang, includinghigh school and university students, youth groups, and budding entrepreneurs.The hub has also led to the creation of a strong digital community in the city, as evidenced by a substantial rise in the number of different online groups and onlinestart-ups, plus an increase in the number of SMEs using ICT intheir everyday operations. Semarang has3,497 SMEs, which now account for 95% of the city’s 3,675 businesses. This growthhas resulted in a sharp increase in the labour absorption rate, which saw 29,770 people employed by SMEs in 2017. The DCS, meanwhile, has become a gathering place for members of Semarang’s digital community who are involved ina variety of different fields, including graphic design, web design, and photography. The DCSenablesthem to exchange information, and has led to the formation of 88 different groups – many of which have established their own online businesses. These achievements have contributed toeconomic growth in Semarang, which during the past two years has experienced rapid growth. This, in turn, has seen the citybecome the main driving force behind Central Java’s overall economic growth.

Indicators used by USAID in its assessment were Political Commitment, Presence of Champions, Enabling Legal Framework, Enforcement of National Policies, and Continuous Citizen Engagement. Each of the five key factors was measured through three indicators showing the intensity of the factor: In recognising how beneficial the initiative has been, and continues to be,for local people and businesses in Semarang, the 3-in-1 PIP service hub has been awarded the following five accolades: 1. Indonesia’s Attractiveness Index Award 2015 2. Top Innovative Region (7 regions) 2015 3. Smart Indonesia Cities Index 2015 4. Top 99 SINOVIK 2016 5. Indonesia Digital Economy Award (IDEA) 2016

Private Sector: State-owned telecommunications firm, PT Telkom, was one of the LG’s first partners, providing both financial and practical assistance todevelop and build the necessary infrastructure to turn the LG’s plan for the 3-in-1 service hub into reality. The company also provided the building for the DCS when it was developed in 2015. Telkom continues to support the project by overseeing network engineering and bandwidth management. Telkom’s Jakarta branch also provided funding for the hub’s computer lab and call centre, plus the equipment for both, through a cooperative agreement with Semarang’s Udinus University. Other companieshave also been staunch supporters of the initiative.State-owned electricity firm PT PLNassisted the LGwith the hub’s design and establishment, whileprivate IT company PT Dinustek helped develop the hub’s ICT elements and continues to provideapplication and server management for the digital components. One of Semarang’s local banks, Bank Jateng, also supported the endeavour by funding a sound system for the second floor of the hub building. These and other companies send staff to help run the service hub and DCS on short-term secondments. Not only does this assist Semarang’s LG with day-to-day operations and service implementation, it also offers seconded staff the opportunity to widen their skill sets and experience. Civil Society: In addition to Binus University, Semarang’s Udinuswas one of the initiative’s earliest supporters; in partnership with the LG and Telkom, Udinus ensured 50% of the hub’s construction costs were covered. Staff from local NGO Pattiro, which advocates for civil-society engagement and the disclosure of public information, helped the LG to design the hub’s services during its development phase.Now that it is fully operational, students from vocational schools and universities help the hub’s staff to provide the services on offer, and gain practical experience in the process.

As a result of the 3-in-1 PIP service hub, the local population in Semarang is able to access and obtain information far more easily than before; the hub has also enabled people to help build the digital economy, as well as triggering the growth of digital activism in Semarang. With regards to improving this initiative, the Semarang LG conducts frequent outreach activities to inform local people about the service hub, and it also organises regular creative digital competitions. At one side, government is challanged to be more transparant and accountable in providing public services; while the community is increasingly aware about their rights