Pattiro’s mission is to:

Encourage the fulfillment of basic rights by the State through equity in the allocation of public budgets,

Develop models of good governance that enable the society to realize social justice,

and strengthen the capacity of civil society to participate actively in the decision-making process.

Pattiro is involved in pro-poor policy and budget advocacy, with a particular attention to the situation of women.  The organization believes that one of the causes of poverty is the lack both of government capacity and of a commitment to encourage the involvement of women and marginalized groups in public processes.  To bring about a change in this situation, Pattiro undertakes capacity-building with civil society groups and women as well as local government.

Economic Policy

Pattiro believes that good governance results in improved welfare for people.  To enhance good governance, the organization works for transparency in government processes as well as greater access to government information, as these, in turn, will increase public participation.  By being able to participate more fully in government, people can ensure that it better meets their needs.   In particular, Pattiro believes that regional resources can enhance the well-being of people at the local level.

Social Policy

Pattiro believes that the decentralization that was introduced in 2001 in Indonesia can be used to solve problems of poverty, through encouraging active participation of the local community and a strong commitment of local government to poverty alleviation.  Pattiro is involved in capacity-building of local government, and in enabling and encouraging community participation in monitoring government programs.  In addition, although Indonesia ratified the ICESCR in 2005, neither the government nor the people have much understanding of the rights guaranteed therein.  Pattiro believes that increased knowledge of the ICESCR will strengthen each party's commitment to poverty reduction and the realization of economic and social rights, especially for vulnerable and marginalized groups.  In particular, the organization is concerned that many of the poor are not enjoying the right to education, and so is trying to create a school accountability system as a way to make sure that education is within reach of the poor.

Pattiro uses a human rights framework (with particular attention to progressive achievements, as well as the obligations of conduct and result), because they have found it helpful in assessing government actions and in talking with the government.

The organization analyzes the national education budget as well as local budgets, with greater attention to the latter.   As part of decentralization, the central government allocates both education funds and general funds to local governments.  Local governments make a decision as to the share of the general funds that will go towards the first 9 years of education.  (Provincial governments are responsible for funding upper secondary education, while the central government funds go to the university level.)  Pattiro looks both at the sufficiency of allocations to education as well as the efficiency of expenditures.

The organization’s work on the education budget has included:

• Research on local government budgets and the extent to which they are in compliance with ICESCR obligations;

• Capacity-building for policymakers on how to develop education policies in line with the government’s ESC rights obligations, and encouraging the development of education regulations and budgets in line with these obligations;

• Research on efficiency of education spending, specifically using the PETS (Public Expenditure Tracking System) methodology;

• Capacity-building for communities in monitoring education budgets at the school level as well as technical assistance to schools on budget transparency;

• Analysis of public expenditure vs. private expenditure in “free” education in the country; and

• A current project of writing a module on the relationship of the budget to ESC rights principles and obligations.

The most significant challenge Pattiro has faced in its work is in building community capacity and power to demand and secure the changes that are needed.  Sometimes the problems encountered are not in the education department, but in, for example, the department of transportation.  In any case, the government sometimes has to give into demands, but at other times resists them.  Another challenge is developing a sufficient understanding of human rights, to be able to ensure that the budget is complying with rights standards.

November 2009