Territorial Politics in Cross-Border Local Development Strategies in the Krayan – Ba’Kelalan Region at the Indonesia – Malaysia Border

Dynamics of uncertainty and complexity shape cross-border local development. The ethnic proximity of communities in the highlands of Kalimantan creates fluid and cross-border cultural empathy in socio-cultural and economic interactions without a formal framework of cross-border cooperation. Indonesian border development policies have shifted socio-cultural relations, triggering socio-economic inequalities and conflicts of interest that impact cross-border activities. This study uses Constructivist Grounded Theory to analyze how these issues play out in the Indonesian-Malaysian border region. The study shows the management of socio-cultural relationships and networks, capital accumulation, and its role in accommodating local interests. In the case study, these efforts lead to sustainable regional development by promoting economic equality and ensuring cross-border interactions and local sovereignty in a region with different jurisdictions and limited resources and capacities. Thus, this study provides empirical evidence of how local development strategies transform into territorial politics in response to the dynamics of cross-border issues.