Harnessing Digital Disruption for Public Service Innovation: The Gancang Aron Program and Public Value Creation in Banyuwangi, Indonesia

Abstract

This article offers a conceptual synthesis that examines how digital platforms can mediate public service delivery to generate public value, drawing on the Gancang Aron initiative in Banyuwangi Regency, Indonesia, as an illustrative case. Moving away from previous studies that tend to evaluate outcomes partially or treat partner platforms purely as logistics providers, this article offers significant conceptual novelty through three major contributions. First, it reframes the Gancang Aron program as a form of digital disruption mobilized for public value creation by integrating three theoretical frameworks—digital governance, platform governance theory, and the public-value framework—into a single unified analytical lens that has not been previously applied to this program. Second, this study consolidates scattered empirical accounts into a comprehensive and integrated public value map encompassing eight dimensions of value (efficiency, accessibility, accountability, security, collaboration, empathy, trust, and human-centric orientation). The article argues that these values are not experienced by citizens as isolated outcomes but are rather co-produced as a holistic, integrated whole. Third, by situating the dynamics of Banyuwangi within the trajectory of post-decentralization reforms in Indonesia, this article provides a crucial Global South perspective to the global platform governance debate, which has historically been dominated by case studies from advanced jurisdictions (OECD) with high administrative capacities. Through this synthesis, it demonstrates that meaningful public service innovation requires institutional adaptability and cross-sector partnerships alongside the technological infrastructure itself.