What drives decarbonization accountability? Evidence from Indonesian local governments

Purpose Addressing the need for decarbonization accountability, this study aims to investigate what drives disclosure by Indonesian provincial governments. We assess whether reporting reflects proactive governance or is a reactive tool for managing legitimacy in a complex context where national climate ambitions meet intense local pressures. Design/methodology/approach A custom disclosure index based on Indonesia's national decarbonization regulation (Perpres No. 98/2021) was applied via manual content analysis to 180 official reports from 30 provinces (2018–2023). A three-model panel data strategy, including two-way fixed-effects and Mundlak/CRE models, was then employed to analyze how socio-environmental, economic and governance factors shape provincial government accountability. Findings The analysis reveals that disclosure is a practice of “reactive legitimacy.” It is strongly and positively driven by a province's economic capacity. The introduction of the national decarbonization regulation and the level of socio-environmental conflict both show a marginally significant positive influence. Conversely, proactive drivers, such as organized stakeholder pressure and a region's ecological capacity for carbon sequestration, were not found to be significant. This pattern indicates a critical “accountability gap” between national policy intent and local implementation. Originality/value This study provides the first multi-level analysis of decarbonization disclosure in the under-researched local government context in the global south. It offers empirical evidence of an “accountability gap” between symbolic, compliance-oriented reporting and the substantive accountability required for effective climate governance, offering valuable insights into both accountability theory and actionable policy recommendations.