Constitutional Court Ruling: Nutritious Meal Programme Budget Must Be Separated from Education Budget

The Constitutional Court (MK) has partially granted a petition filed by the Nusantara Learning Garden Foundation (TB Nusantara) and five individual petitioners challenging the constitutionality of the Explanation of Article 22, paragraph 3 of the 2026 State Budget Law (UU APBN 2026). In Decision Number 40/PUU-XXIV/2026, delivered during a plenary session on Thursday (30/07/2026), the Court ruled that the provision is conditionally constitutional.

Chief Justice Suhartoyo stated that the explanation of Article 22, paragraph 3 of Law Number 17 of 202<0xA0>25 is only valid for the 2026 Fiscal Year. For subsequent years, the budget for the Nutritious Meal Programme (MBG)—which is not a primary component of education—must be separated from the operational education budget. This separation must be implemented no later than the 2028 Fiscal Year, or within two years of the ruling.

In the Court’s considerations, Constitutional Judge Enny Nurbaningsih noted that to uphold the mandate of Article 31, paragraph 4 of the 1945 Constitution, lawmakers must separate MBG allocations from the education budget. This ensures that the mandatory 20% allocation from both the State Budget (APBN) and Regional Budgets (APBD) is dedicated to essential educational elements, including students, educators, infrastructure, curriculum, and educational development, excluding MBG funding.

The Court emphasised that including MBG funding within the ‘operational education budget’ expands the definition of educational operations in a way that threatens the principle of mandatory spending and creates legal uncertainty. To protect the constitutional rights of citizens to education, the MBG budget must be distinct from the core education fund.

While the separation must be completed by 2028, the Court noted that if the 2027 Budget is still being prepared, the MBG programme may remain part of the education budget only if it does not reduce the core education allocation below the 20% threshold. However, the Court suggested that if the government can adjust the 2027 budget structure to comply with this ruling, it would be preferable to implement the separation starting from the 2027 Fiscal Year.