Fishermen's Children in Gorontalo Report Not Yet Receiving MBG, Prabowo's Response

President Prabowo Subianto questioned residents who are fishermen in Leato Selatan sub-district, Gorontalo, regarding the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) programme. This moment occurred during a dialogue as the President inspected the Red White Fishermen’s Village (KNMP) in Gorontalo on Saturday (9/5/2025).

During the occasion, Prabowo inquired about the progress of the MBG programme implementation in schools. However, Prabowo heard from several residents that there are still schools that have not received the programme.

“Has MBG reached the schools?” Prabowo asked.

The residents then replied that some have not yet received it. Upon hearing this, Prabowo immediately asked the local government officials to promptly survey the schools that have not obtained the MBG programme.

“Are there any that haven’t? Yes, note down those that haven’t and we’ll handle them immediately. Basically, this year, all schools that feel they need it will receive MBG,” Prabowo said.

He stressed that the programme is prioritised for children in need. According to him, the government wants to ensure that the younger generation receives sufficient nutrition to grow healthily and learn effectively.

He also explained that this programme is not something that is forced.

“If children from wealthy families don’t need it, that’s fine, no compulsion. But we want our children to be strong, we want our children to be enthusiastic, we want our children to be smart,” he stated.

In addition to discussing MBG, Prabowo also highlighted the digitalisation of education in Gorontalo. He asked the regional head about the distribution of “smart screens” in schools.

According to Prabowo, starting this year, every school will receive an additional three smart screen units. With this addition, he hopes that by the end of the year, all schools will have at least four classrooms equipped with interactive digital facilities.

“Eventually, all classrooms will have those smart screens, brothers and sisters. Teachers in remote areas can be assisted from the centre with lessons, syllabi, and teaching materials provided in real time,” Prabowo said.

He also mentioned that the central government will be able to monitor teaching and learning activities directly from Jakarta, including teacher attendance in regional schools.

“We can monitor all classes from Jakarta. If there’s a teacher who doesn’t show up, we can see it,” he said.