Five years to 2030: Assessing a multi-stakeholder collaboration model for localized sustainable development goals (SDGs) implementation in Banyumas regency, Indonesia

This study examines global-local partnership dynamics in sustainable development implementation through a qualitative case study of Banyumas Regency, Central Java, Indonesia. As a mid-sized Indonesian regency pursuing localized sustainable development goals (SDGs) despite limited resources, Banyumas has established partnerships involving UNDP, the World Bank, and German development agencies. Using in-depth interviews (n=45), policy document analysis (n=32 documents), and focus group discussions (n=2), this research analyzes collaboration patterns and evaluates how international organizations contribute to local sustainable development. Findings reveal that partnerships concentrate predominantly in integrated waste management, achieving 99.31% household waste handling coverage and 66.83% waste reduction through circular economy initiatives. However, collaborations remain largely project-based and sector-specific, operating at cooperative rather than integrative levels of multi-stakeholder engagement. The study introduces the concept of "resource magnetism"—a self-reinforcing mechanism whereby early success in one sector attracts cumulative additional resources while potentially neglecting other priority areas—to explain this concentration pattern. Other critical SDG sectors, including energy, tourism, and climate action, remain significantly underserved. The pentahelix governance model, while institutionally adopted, shows incomplete operational integration across the five stakeholder sectors. This research contributes to the underexplored literature on regency-level SDG implementation partnerships in developing country contexts, offering insights into partnership evolution patterns, sustainability challenges, and the structural barriers shaping global-local collaboration effectiveness.