Leadership Change at National Nutrition Agency: A Momentum for Free Nutritious Meal Programme to Focus on 3T Regions

The Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI) hopes that the new leadership of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN) will serve as a momentum for the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) programme to focus more heavily on families at risk of stunting, reaching children in the outermost, frontier, and least developed (3T) regions, as well as vulnerable groups.

“We congratulate the new Head of the BGN, Ms Nanik Sudarytati Deyang. We hope that under this new leadership, the MBG programme becomes a gateway for changing the parenting and dietary patterns of Indonesian families, rather than being merely a food distribution programme. This programme must return to its original ambition: improving national nutritional status, reducing stunting, and reaching vulnerable groups and priority regions,” said KPAI Vice Chairman Jasra Putra when contacted in Jakarta on Wednesday.

According to Jasra Putra, the change in leadership at the BGN must act as a turning point to comprehensively improve the direction of the MBG programme. He noted that the evaluation of the MBG programme cannot be equated with standard annual government programme evaluations.

He argued that food provision programmes have an immediate impact on beneficiaries, both in terms of benefits and risks. “Providing food is a programme where the impact is felt instantly. The same applies when governance errors lead to mass poisoning. Therefore, the governance of the MBG programme requires rapid and fundamental changes; it cannot wait for annual evaluations,” said Jasra Putra.

KPAI also requested that the Ministry of Health provide transparent answers regarding the effectiveness of the MBG programme in reducing stunting rates in Indonesia, including the programme’s achievements regarding children in 3T regions and the vulnerable groups targeted by the initial policy.