President Prabowo Asks for Review of IDR 15,000 Free Nutritious Meal Budget per Student

President Prabowo Subianto has requested the National Nutrition Agency (BGN) to review the adequacy of the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) programme budget, currently set at IDR 15,000 per recipient. The move is intended to inform further government policy on the priority programme.

Deputy Head of BGN, Agustina Arumsari, revealed the President’s directive after a meeting at the Presidential Palace complex in Jakarta on Wednesday. “He asked whether the IDR 15,000 budget is sufficient. Please review it. If it is not enough, what should the figure be?” Agustina said, quoting the President’s instructions.

Agustina stated that the directive serves as a crucial guide for BGN to refine the programme’s implementation and ensure the nutritional quality for beneficiaries is maintained. Regarding speculation about potential budget cuts, she emphasised that calculations are still in progress and a final figure has not been determined.

When asked about possible budget reductions following an evaluation during the school holiday period, she declined to comment further, saying, “Who said that? Ask the person who made the news.”

For context, the programme’s previous budget scheme divided raw material costs by education level, with IDR 8,000 allocated for early childhood to third-grade students and IDR 10,000 for fourth grade to senior high school students, excluding operational and facility costs per portion.