Indri Islamiati , Media Wahyudi Askar , and Hadian Resky Aisyah
This study investigates the influence of good village governance on smartvillage development in Indonesia, offering evidence-based insights for poli-cymakers and local governments. This study constructs a Smart VillageIndex for 84,647 villages using the 2021 Village Potential Survey (PODES)and polychoric-based Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Due to the lackof standardized metrics, we propose a new quantitative framework tomeasure development potential. The research addresses two questions: theregional distribution of smart village potential in Indonesia and the impactof good governance on this development. The findings reveal significantregional disparities: DI Yogyakarta, DKI Jakarta, and Bali demonstrate highpotential, while Papua and West Papua score the lowest. These variationsreflect differences in infrastructure and service access. Regression analysisconfirms that good village governance significantly enhances smart villagedevelopment. In contrast, corruption shows a negative but inconsistenteffect. The study highlights the importance of investing in digital infra-structure, promoting transparency, and encouraging community participa-tion to bridge regional gaps. These findings support targeted policyinterventions to advance smart village initiatives, particularly in under-served areas, and contribute to sustainable rural transformation inIndonesia.
Reference:
Islamiati, I., Wahyudi Askar, M., & Resky Aisyah, H. (2026). Empowering Rural Transformation: The Role of Good Governance in Developing Smart Villages in Indonesia. Public Integrity, 1-19.
Link:
https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/ZQSTXZM46BXQQNNJI6MP/full?target=10.1080/10999922.2026.2637336