ADMINISTRATIVE REFORM IN DECENTRALIZED GOVERNANCE: REFRAMING BUREAUCRATIC CAPACITY, PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILITY, AND SUSTAINABLE GOVERNANCE IN LOCAL INSTITUTIONS

Effective governance in decentralized systems remains a critical challenge, particularly in ensuring bureaucratic efficiency, accountability, and sustainability within local institutions. This study aims to analyze the role of bureaucratic capacity in enhancing governance performance, evaluate the impact of public accountability mechanisms on citizen trust and service quality, and assess sustainable governance practices integrated into administrative reform strategies. The research was conducted in multiple Indonesian local governments, employing a purposive sampling of 15 respondents including civil servants and local policymakers, with data collected through structured questionnaires and interviews. Quantitative analysis was performed using descriptive statistics and inferential tests, complemented by qualitative thematic analysis to capture contextual insights. The findings reveal that robust bureaucratic capacity, encompassing human, structural, and procedural dimensions, significantly improves local governance efficiency and effectiveness. Public accountability mechanisms were shown to enhance citizen trust, reinforce institutional legitimacy, and elevate service quality, while the integration of sustainable governance practices ensures long-term resilience, equitable resource allocation, and policy continuity. The novelty of this study lies in its integrated framework that concurrently examines bureaucratic capacity, accountability, and sustainability within decentralized governance, a perspective rarely explored in emerging economies. The implications highlight the necessity for targeted capacity-building initiatives, institutionalized accountability protocols, and sustainability-oriented administrative reforms to strengthen local governance outcomes. The study contributes both theoretically and empirically by providing a model for policy implementation and a benchmark for comparative governance research in decentralized contexts.