TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Center of Economic and Law Studies (Celios) assessed that the distribution of the Free Nutritious Meal Program (MBG) from President Prabowo Subianto's administration has not been right on target. Celios conveyed this assessment after 20 days of implementing the MBG which targeted various schools in Indonesia.

According to Celios researcher, Galau D. Muhammad, the MBG Program which has only been running in some schools has not focused on those who need it most. "To pursue the effectiveness of this program, the government should focus more on those who need it," said Galau in an online Celios research dissemination activity on Monday, January 27, 2025.

Galau said that the group who most need the free meal program are those from low-income families. In particular, said Galau, namely for children from families with incomes below Rp2 million per month. "So when the government wants to seriously resolve today's food problems, it seems that those who should be targeted are children from families with incomes below Rp2 million," said Galau.

Galau said that low-income families account for the majority of those who experience food shortages. Therefore, Galau stated that the MBG Program, which is currently still limited, should be focused on targeting them.

Celios assessed that currently the schools determined by the government to receive MBG still seem random. The government also does not widely convey the reasons for choosing one school as a recipient of MBG benefits, while others do not. "That is what needs to be noted that when targeting anyone randomly, it does not seem to solve the problem of food vulnerability in Indonesia today," said Galau.

Currently, Galau assessed that the government is still forcing the MBG program to be implemented nationally. In fact, Indonesia still faces fiscal limitations to geographical and infrastructure obstacles to distribute free food to schools widely.

President Prabowo Subianto previously apologized because not all children have received free nutritious food. However, the Head of State ensured the adequacy of the program's fund allocation.

Prabowo said that the MBG Program is physically not easy to immediately apply to all people, besides from an administrative perspective it cannot be completed immediately. "But I believe that by the end of 2025, all Indonesian children will be able to eat nutritious food," Prabowo said when met in Sumedang, West Java, Monday, January 20, 2025.

He considered the very large program not easy, so it requires cooperation from all related institutions. "I guarantee the funds are there. I guarantee the funds are there for all Indonesian children," said Prabowo.

Dani Aswara contributed to this article.

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