Journal of Economic Growth and Development Review
Volume 2 Issue 2 September 2025

Disempowered by Design: Information Inequality in the Age of Inclusive Growth

A'zdom, Muhammad Khofidul (Unknown)
Firnanda , Deviyan Angel (Unknown)



Article Info

Publish Date
30 Sep 2025

Abstract

In an era where inclusive growth has become a global development mantra, this study critically examines a frequently overlooked dimension: information inequality. While infrastructure expansion and digital inclusion are often presented as pathways to empowerment, this research argues that many development efforts are structured in ways that silence marginalized voices, particularly in peripheral regions. Using a qualitative approach combining critical discourse analysis, interviews, and case studies from remote areas in Indonesia the study explores how development communication practices reflect and reproduce power imbalances. Findings reveal that dominant narratives frame poverty as a technical issue, exclude communities from meaningful participation, and centralizing communicative control in elite institutions. At the same time, grassroots actors engage in alternative communication strategies, highlighting their agency and resilience. The study concludes that true inclusion requires not just access, but the redistribution of communicative power, enabling communities to shape the narratives and policies that define their futures. Communication, therefore, must be recognized not merely as a channel, but as a site of justice, voice, and democratic engagement in the age of inclusive growth.

Copyrights © 2025






Journal Info

Abbrev

journal

Publisher

Subject

Economics, Econometrics & Finance

Description

The research scope of this journal is the issues of economic growth and development in Indonesia and the world. The journal accepts contributions in the form of theoretical, empirical, and policy articles that address one or more of the following topics: 1. The sources and drivers of economic growth ...