Precarious frontier and the handling of COVID-19 in Indigenous communities in Borneo

This article focuses on what we can learn about good public health delivery through the experiences of indigenous peoples and local officials in Borneo’s borderland throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

The government of Indonesia says it has committed to improving the healthcare system to safeguard vulnerable populations from the pandemic’s destructive impacts. However, the results of our research in Borneo frontier communities in North Kalimantan Province near the Malaysian border reveal that there is a discrepancy between the priorities and policies of the government and the responses of community and local officials.

We are undertaking a four-year collaborative research project (2021-2024) led by the Asia Institute, University of Melbourne and the Asia Research Centre Universitas Indonesia on the response by Asian governments and civil society organisations to the COVID-19 pandemic, funded by PRIME-LPDP (Partnership in Research Indonesia and Melbourne—Lembaga Pengelola Dana Pendidikan (Indonesia Endowment fund for education).