Constitutional Court Ruling Paves Way for Strengthening Education Budget, Free Nutritious Meals Programme Requires New Funding Scheme

Chair of Commission X of the House of Representatives (DPR RI), Hetifah Sjaifudian, has welcomed the Constitutional Court (MK) ruling which stipulates that funding for the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) Programme can no longer be charged to the mandatory 20 per cent education budget allocation sourced from the state budget (APBN). She described the ruling as an important step to refocus the education budget on improving the quality of human resources through quality and equitable education.

"We certainly greatly appreciate the MK ruling. This ruling provides confirmation that the 20 per cent education budget must be refocused on the core and operational needs of education as mandated by the constitution," Hetifah said.

Following up on the MK ruling on 30 July 2026, which mandates the gradual separation of the MBG Programme budget from the education budget starting from the 2027 APBN and no later than the 2028 APBN, the Golkar Party faction legislator assessed that the government needs to immediately prepare an alternative funding scheme. This is because the largest portion of the MBG budget has so far come from the education function.

"With the withdrawal of the largest portion from the education budget, the government certainly needs to seek alternative funding sources, whether through the addition of new budget items, reallocation from other budget items outside education, or through reserve funds. However, the concrete decision still awaits further discussion between the Government and the DPR," she said.

Hetifah emphasised that Commission X of the DPR RI will continue to prioritise strengthening the quality of national education, from improving teacher welfare to enhancing learning quality and equitable access to education.

"The main priority we always fight for is improving the quality of learning, including improving teacher welfare and realising equitable access to education. The focus and resources of education must be directed at improving the quality of education from upstream to downstream, with an absolute priority on teacher welfare and improving learning quality," Hetifah stated.

Hetifah assured that Commission X of the DPR RI will oversee the implementation of the MK ruling so that it is reflected in the drafting of the 2027 APBN. According to her, discussions regarding budget allocations will be conducted jointly with the government after the President delivers the Financial Note for the 2027 Draft State Budget in mid-August.

"This is certainly our concern. The DPR RI together with the Government will discuss the budget allocation until an agreement is reached on the definitive spending ceiling for the 2027 Fiscal Year Draft State Budget. The push to realise the separation of the MBG budget from the education budget starting from the 2027 APBN will depend greatly on the dynamics of the discussion between the Government and the DPR later," she said.