The Indonesian Government Capacity in Responding to the COVID-19 Impacts on the Creative Economy Sector

Extensive research has been carried out on government capacity to cope with the pandemic. However, little study on this issue exists examining it in the context of the creative economy sector. It has been argued that the successful organizations to address changes in the environment are determined by their organizational capacity. In this paper, we analyze the Indonesian government’s capacity to recover the creative economy sector during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. The qualitative content analysis method and key informant interviews were undertaken to understand government capacity. The paper extended the RISE (resilience, intention, sustain, and endurance) model to understand the process of government actions in recovering the creative economy sector from the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The RISE model portrays the government’s capacity to respond to the hostile and uncertain environment through tax and loan relaxation, social and health assistance, and capacity building. This paper provides valuable insight into public administration by highlighting government responses to the global pandemic. By analyzing four stages of government actions in restoring the creative economy sector, this study shows that the expected outcomes are far from satisfactory. The government intervention during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic becomes ineffective because the government is weak in preparing the creative economy recovery policies according to the needs of creative economy actors and accurate data. These findings suggest that the central and local government should improve their collaborative capacity to upgrade the creative economy recovery programs according to the local aspiration.