East Kalimantan Health Office Strengthens Free Nutritious Meals Programme Through Regional Training
Samarinda — The Health Office of East Kalimantan Province is continuously strengthening food safety standards and nutritional quality for the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) programme through intensive training activities for regional-level trainers.
“When we talk about the MBG in schools, we are actually talking about investment in health, intelligence and productivity of the future generation,” said East Kalimantan Health Office Head Jaya Mualimin in Samarinda on Friday.
According to Jaya, the success of this national strategic programme is measured not only by the availability of regular meal portions, but depends significantly on strict daily food safety management.
“A nutritious menu that is not managed with proper hygiene principles could create various health risks for schoolchildren,” he emphasised.
Conversely, daily meals that are merely safe but fall short of nutritional standards will certainly fail to optimise the crucial growth and development phase of students.
In response to these challenges, all cross-sectoral training participants are targeted to transform into capable trainer agents who can oversee the quality of Nutritional Services Units (SPPG) in their respective working areas.
The distinctive geographical characteristics of the vast Kalimantan Island require each trainer to intelligently seek solutions in adapting national feasibility standards to conditions of remote regional infrastructure.
Alongside nutritional food provision, nutritional education programmes are also considered fundamental to ensure school-age children possess strong literacy about clean and healthy living practices.
Inter-agency collaboration involving the education office, the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM) and the religious affairs ministry office is specifically designed to ensure no gaps in service quality of the programme.
“With this consolidation of certified trainers, we are confident that the strategic roadmap for creating an excellent generation with global competitiveness for Indonesia Gold 2045 will be further strengthened,” said Jaya.