Dulohupa: Gorontalo’s Path to Inclusive Development

The Gorontalo Provincial Government has introduced an inclusive governance innovation through the Gorontalo Inclusion Forum Dulohupa (FGI Dulohupa), a pre-Musrenbang forum supported by the SKALA Program to ensure meaningful participation of vulnerable groups such as women, children, the elderly, and people with disabilities. Drawing from the local value of Dulohupa, which means deliberation for consensus, this forum bridges equal dialogue between citizens and the government, resulting in concrete policies such as disability-friendly public services, safe transportation, and violence-free schools, which are now included in regional planning documents. With regulatory support and implementation guidelines, the Dulohupa FGI serves as a tangible model for applying the SDGs principle of “No One Left Behind”, that the best development is development that listens to all voices and designs social welfare inclusively.