Challenges of Policy Frameworks in Protecting Coastal Communities Affected by Slow-Onset Climate Change Disasters

Abstract

Tidal flooding (banjir rob) has emerged as a critical manifestation of slow-onset climate change impacts along Indonesia’s coastlines, particularly on the northern coast of Central Java. Unlike sudden-onset disasters, tidal flooding develops gradually and cumulatively, creating prolonged vulnerability for coastal communities. This article examines the extent to which existing policy frameworks at national, provincial, and municipal/regency levels provide protection for coastal communities affected by tidal flooding, using a human security perspective. Employing a qualitative descriptive approach grounded in participatory research, the study combines policy document analysis with insights from community workshops conducted in Semarang City and Demak Regency under the Research and Advocacy for Climate Policy and Action (RACPA) program. The findings show that Indonesia has not yet established an integrated policy framework that explicitly recognizes tidal flooding as a slow-onset climate disaster. Protection measures remain fragmented across disaster management regulations, development planning instruments, and sectoral policies. Existing interventions provide partial protection across four domain: housing, economic, social, and environmental protection but are largely reactive and insufficiently responsive to the cumulative nature of tidal flooding. This condition constrains policy coherence, funding allocation, and implementation effectiveness, placing coastal communities in a precarious position between remaining in increasingly uninhabitable areas or relocating under conditions of socio-economic uncertainty. The article argues for a more inclusive, integrated, and community-centered policy framework to strengthen protection for climate-vulnerable coastal populations.