MTI Offers Six Solutions to Strengthen Free Nutritious Meal Programme Regulations

Transparency International Indonesia (MTI) believes the handling of an alleged corruption case at the National Nutrition Agency (BGN) must serve as momentum to evaluate and comprehensively overhaul the governance design of the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) programme. Systemic structural improvements are deemed far more crucial to guarantee the programme’s long-term sustainability. MTI Executive Director Ahmad Jilul Q Farid stated that legal action by the Attorney General’s Office against former BGN leadership was an appropriate step. However, he cautioned that refining the policy architecture and derivative regulations is the key to closing loopholes for future irregularities. ‘As long as the policy architecture is not changed, the same challenges and potential risks will still be faced by the new management inheriting that system. Our future focus must rest on systemic reform,’ Jilul said in a written statement on Thursday (4/6/2026). In its review, MTI mapped four strategic areas in the current regulatory design that require strengthening and stricter limitations to prevent conflicts of interest. First, objective parameters, strict criteria, and transparent testing procedures are needed regarding the exemption clause for the number of Nutrition Fulfilment Service Units (SPPG) to avoid double standards in the field. Second, rules limiting kitchen management are advised to target not only the legal entity level (foundations) but must also reach individual partnership levels to avoid ownership concentration. Third, regulations must be formulated to strictly prohibit the involvement of supervisory body functionaries, law enforcement officers, and public officials in the ownership or management of kitchen operational units. Fourth, referring to the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) Deputy for Prevention’s study and BGN’s internal evaluation regarding fluctuations in raw material prices above the Highest Retail Price (HET), regulations must be stricter in implementing Article 38 of Presidential Regulation Number 115 of 2025, which mandates the involvement of Village-Owned Enterprises (BUMDes) and village cooperatives. ‘The government itself has actually identified challenges in the supply chain and the dynamics of raw material prices in the field. The next step awaited by the public is translating that evaluation into a more robust regulatory design revision,’ Jilul said. As a form of constructive contribution, MTI is offering six strategic solution recommendations to the government and BGN’s new leadership to strengthen programme governance. First, public data transparency by opening access to partner selection transparency and supporting goods/services procurement data periodically on official portals. Second, standardisation of technical regulations by narrowing ambiguous discretionary spaces. Third, strengthening regional institutions by building independent oversight mechanisms commensurate with the programme scale, and actively integrating the role of Regional Governments (Pemda). Fourth, prioritising budget allocations for direct nutritional fulfilment and limiting procurement of non-priority supporting facilities prone to mark-ups. Fifth, completing all operational rules following the issuance of Presidential Regulation Number 115 of 2025 so that field implementation has a complete legal umbrella. Finally, synchronising the pace of programme coverage expansion with the readiness of governance systems and supervisory capacity in each region. ‘The biggest challenge ahead is the courage to reset or reorganise the governance of SPPG which is considered less accountable. We require strict and transparent standardisation to realise a clean and integrated national nutrition fulfilment programme,’ Jilul concluded.