Civil Society Coalition Demands Temporary Halt to Free Nutritious Meal Programme

A civil society coalition assembled under the banner of MBG Watch held a demonstration outside the office of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN) on Jalan Kebon Sirih, Central Jakarta, on Wednesday. The action demanded the BGN temporarily suspend the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) programme. One of the protest representatives, Agus Sarwono, stated there were several demands voiced during the action. One was a request for the BGN to halt the MBG programme temporarily, for at least 30 days. “Our emphasis is clear: a moratorium first, a halt first, a brief pause to fix the governance,” he told reporters on Wednesday. The researcher from Transparency International Indonesia assessed that the moratorium step taken by the BGN for the construction of nutrition fulfilment service units, or MBG kitchens, was insufficient. This is because the MBG programme continues to run despite the moratorium. According to Agus, there are many problems within the BGN that must be resolved first before the programme resumes. He noted that quite a few internal BGN figures own MBG kitchens. “In fact, one of the biggest corruption risks in the free nutritious meal programme is conflict of interest,” he said. Furthermore, MBG Watch also urged the BGN to be transparent about the procurement processes that have been carried out so far, including the partner appointment process. He noted there has never been clear information regarding this matter. “Thirdly, we also really want, or at least would like information on, who the real players are. Because there are so many foundation partners who are actually affiliated with interest groups: political parties, members of the Indonesian House of Representatives, members of regional legislative councils, and so on,” Agus stated. He assessed that the protest was not intended to stop the MBG programme. He acknowledged that there are parties who truly need the programme. “We cannot deny that there are beneficiaries who really need it. We ourselves from TII have visited schools and found several head teachers who said, ‘Oh yes, in our place it is appropriate,’” he said. On the other hand, the programme also misses the mark in many instances. He noted that not a few beneficiaries actually do not need free meals from taxpayer money. “This means we need to be selective, not indiscriminate,” he remarked.