Local Leadership, Collaboration and Women’s Participation in Flood Disaster Management

Abstract

This article examines how local leadership, inter-agency coordination, risk communication, and women’s participation operate in flood disaster management in Wombo Induk Village, Tanantovea District, Donggala Regency Central Sulawesi. The study employed a descriptive qualitative approach, drawing on structured interviews with five informants representing the village head, hamlet heads, village secretary, and a women’s community leader/Family Welfare Empowerment (PKK), complemented by field observations and documentation. Data were analyzed through data condensation, categorization, and thematic analysis. The findings reveal that disaster governance in Wombo operates through a layered leadership structure. The Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) and village government provide formal authority, evacuation guidance, aid distribution, and external coordination, while hamlet heads, community leaders, local organizations, and community networks support mobilization, information dissemination, and collective action. Community deliberation (musyawarah) serves as an important mechanism for determining assembly points and allocating responsibilities. However, the absence of a dedicated disaster management forum, communication gaps across levels of government, limited post-disaster community participation, and women’s involvement that remains concentrated in food provision indicate that local capacities have yet to be fully institutionalized. This article argues that village resilience cannot rely solely on formal leadership but requires the institutionalization of collaborative local leadership that connects government institutions, community networks, local knowledge, and women’s participation within sustainable disaster risk reduction mechanisms.