Thriving Amidst Change: Indonesian MSMEs’ Resilient Response to Urban Spatial Governance

DOI

10.2991/978-94-6239-709-5_27How to use a DOI?

Keywords

MSMEs; urban spatial governance; informal economy; resilience strategies; South Sulawesi; Indonesia

Abstract

Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) play a central role in urban livelihoods, yet their activities particularly informal food-and-beverage vending often intersect with contested public-space governance. This study examines how MSMEs in South Sulawesi, Indonesia, adapt to shifting urban spatial governance and enforcement practices. Using a qualitative descriptive–interpretive design, we conducted in-depth semi-structured interviews with 20 food-and-beverage MSME owners operating under varying degrees of regulatory pressure across Makassar City, Gowa Regency, and Maros Regency. Data were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using Framework Analysis to generate applied, policy-relevant themes. Findings show that MSME resilience is enacted through: (1) informal negotiation and relationship-building with local authorities; (2) adaptive mobility and spatial repositioning to reduce exposure to enforcement; (3) diversification of sales channels and digital practices to stabilize income amid uncertainty; (4) collective and network-based coping through peer information sharing and mutual support; and (5) psychological and identity-oriented strategies that sustain persistence despite stigma, fear of displacement, and ambiguous relocation policies. These results highlight resilience as a multidimensional process shaped by governance ambiguity, uneven enforcement, and the everyday politics of visibility in public space. Policy implications include the need for clearer relocation mechanisms, transparent enforcement procedures, and participatory arrangements that protect livelihoods while maintaining urban order.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Xi Hecan
AU  - Indrianty Sudirman
AU  - Abdullah Sanusi
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/06/20
TI  - Thriving Amidst Change: Indonesian MSMEs’ Resilient Response to Urban Spatial Governance
BT  - Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Accounting, Management, and Economics (10th ICAME 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 381
EP  - 392
SN  - 2352-5428
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6239-709-5_27
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6239-709-5_27
ID  - Hecan2026
ER  -