Women’s faith-based organisations and collaborative social accountability for achieving health equity in Indonesia

This paper explored the innovative use of a collaborative social accountability mechanism led by a women’s faith-based organisation (FBO) to promote health equity within Indonesia’s National Health Insurance (NHI) system. Through a qualitative case study drawing on cadres’ monthly reports and multistakeholder meeting notes, it analyses how Fatayat Nahdlatul Ulama (Fatayat NU) leveraged its organisational legitimacy, volunteer activism, and extensive political and social networks to assist low-income households in registering for subsidised NHI, accessing health services, and mobilising support for underserved patients. By acting as a trusted interlocutor between citizens and state institutions, Fatayat Nahdlatul Ulama not only strengthened government responsiveness but also illustrated how women’s FBOs can operationalise collaborative accountability to make universal health coverage more equitable and inclusive.