Fact Check: Ministry of Religion Using Zakat for Free Nutritious Meals Programme is False

A social media post on Facebook falsely claimed that Indonesia’s Minister of Religion Nasaruddin Umar intended to maximise zakat and waqf donations to support the Free Nutritious Meals Programme (MBG). The post also included comments suggesting zakat could be used outside the eight legitimate recipient categories (asnaf).

However, the Ministry of Religion has clarified that this narrative is incorrect. Minister of Religion Nasaruddin Umar explicitly stated that zakat cannot be used outside the eight asnaf as regulated in the Quran. Using zakat beyond these legitimate recipients would constitute a breach of Islamic law.

“Zakat cannot be used outside its asnaf categories. We must not give zakat to non-asnaf recipients. That would be a matter of Islamic law,” the minister stated on 2 March.

The Head of the Ministry of Religion’s Public Relations and Communication Bureau, Thobib Al Asyhar, reinforced this position by confirming that there is no government policy linking zakat to the MBG programme.

Separately, Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya also clarified that the Free Nutritious Meals Programme does not reduce education budget allocations, as some narratives had suggested. The National Nutrition Agency (BGN) has undertaken a budget allocation review following identified cases, with MBG funding sourced from health, education, and government assistance allocations across relevant ministries.

Beyond its nutritional impact on students, the Free Nutritious Meals Programme is generating positive economic effects for communities in programme implementation areas.