DPR Commission X to Minister of Higher Education: Manage Free Nutritious Meal Programme Through Research, Not Kitchens

The Deputy Chair of Commission X of the DPR, My Esti Wijayanti, has criticised the Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Technology (Mendiktisaintek), Brian Yuliarto, regarding the involvement of universities in managing the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) programme. Esti questioned why a ministry intended to oversee higher education and research is being tasked with the operational aspects of the meal programme.

“When you already have so many homework assignments, you still have to manage the MBG,” Esti stated before Minister Brian Yuliarto during a working meeting at Commission X of the DPR in Senayan, South Jakarta, on Tuesday, 2 June 2026. “The programme needs breakthrough activities, Sir. In my opinion, you should not be managing the MBG [logistics] directly.”

Esti argued that if the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology wishes to be involved in the MBG programme, its focus should not be on distribution or supply chains. Rather than encouraging universities to build kitchens for the programme, the ministry should increase studies and analyses regarding the various issues arising from the initiative.

“If you want to manage the MBG, what part should be managed, Sir? The studies, the analysis, the scientific aspects. Why were there so many cases of food poisoning recently?” Esti asked.

Similarly, she suggested that the ministry should conduct analyses regarding the obstacles faced in priority areas, such as the outermost, frontier, and least developed (3T) regions, which have not yet received the MBG. She recommended that universities increase research into the ecosystem required for the successful implementation of the programme.

“That is the duty of Diktisaintek and its research agency. For what purpose? So that the MBG programme can be successful and run smoothly. But this must be achieved through research,” Esti concluded.