Hashim Djojohadikusumo: Free Nutritious Meal Programme Will Not Stop
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Special Envoy to the President for Energy and Climate, Hashim Djojohadikusumo, has asserted that the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) programme for children and pregnant women will not be discontinued.
During his speech at the inauguration of the central, regional, and village-level leadership of Srikandi Jaga Desa—a branch of the National Village Consultative Body Association (Abpednas)—in Jakarta on Friday night, Hashim emphasised that the MBG programme represents the firm resolve of President Prabowo Subianto.
“I believe it is no longer a secret that the government is determined to continue the MBG programme; it will not stop until we succeed. We will provide nutritious food for all children and pregnant women who require nutritious meals. This is a firm resolve and a campaign promise of Prabowo Subianto; it will not stop, it will be continued,” he stated.
Hashim noted that the MBG programme has been an idea of President Prabowo since approximately 2006. He added that Prabowo aspires to improve the health of Indonesian children suffering from stunting.
According to Hashim, this programme was a promise made by Prabowo long before he was elected President. “This has been a campaign promise of Prabowo Subianto since 2009, when he was a vice-presidential candidate, continued in 2014 as a presidential candidate, continued in 2019, and continued in 2024. It is Prabowo Subianto’s campaign promise that all children in Indonesia who desire it will receive free nutritious meals, so that the very heavy condition of stunting can be overcome,” he said.
However, Hashim did not deny the possibility of potential misappropriation during the programme’s implementation. Consequently, he called upon relevant ministries, agencies, and members of Srikandi Jaga Desa to oversee the execution of the MBG programme.
“Programmes with noble goals, but if their implementation is not properly supervised and guided, we have seen what the results can be,” Hashim remarked.