BGN Head: MBG Programme Can Transform Indonesia Like Japan

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA – The National Nutrition Agency (BGN) states that the government is currently striving to improve the quality of human resources (HR). One of the efforts being undertaken is intervening in the nutritional adequacy for Indonesian children. BGN Head Dadan Hindayana revealed that Indonesia is now beginning to adopt Japan’s strategy in promoting significant increases in height and the health quality of generations. According to him, Japan serves as a real example of the success of structured nutritional interventions that directly impact the improvement in the population’s height. “Japan has been implementing nutritious eating for nearly 100 years. We see that over a period of about 50 years, the average height of Japanese males rose from 159 cm to around 170 cm,” he said in his statement on Tuesday (28/4/2026). According to Dadan, this success does not stop at physical improvements but extends to changes in societal lifestyle patterns. He explained that in the initial phase, interventions were carried out through the provision of nutritious food, followed by education, and ultimately forming independent healthy living habits. “Initially intervention, then education, and finally becoming a healthy lifestyle habit. That’s what happened in Japan,” he said.