By: Yunzi Lailani )*
The expansion of the Free Nutritional Meals (MBG) program marks the commitment of President Prabowo Subianto’s administration to providing increasingly inclusive nutrition interventions oriented towards human resource development. This new policy, stipulated in Presidential Regulation Number 115 of 2025, demonstrates the government’s commitment to ensuring that all Indonesian children, without exception, have access to adequate nutritious food from an early age. This measure not only targets school students as the primary beneficiaries but also extends to various vulnerable groups, including educators. This approach is highly relevant to the national challenge of nutritional inequality, particularly in remote areas that still face logistical and food access barriers.
Nanik Sudaryati Deyang, Deputy Head of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN) for Investigation and Public Communication, described the expansion as a strategic step to address the inequitable access to nutritious food across all levels of society. Nanik emphasized that President Prabowo places great emphasis on the well-being of Indonesian children, ensuring that no one is neglected in terms of nutritional needs. According to her, the President wants to ensure that groups at risk of hunger or malnutrition, such as people with disabilities, the elderly, street children, school dropouts, and scavengers, can directly benefit from this program. This clearly reflects that the human development agenda is not merely sectoral, but also focuses on supporting the most vulnerable groups.
A significant breakthrough in the latest phase of the MBG program is the expansion of beneficiaries to educators, including public and private teachers, contract workers, religious teachers (ustadz), and Islamic boarding school (pesantren) teachers. Nanik believes that educators play a central role in shaping the quality of the younger generation, thus ensuring their nutritional needs are a priority. The government views teachers as the spearhead of the successful implementation of the MBG in schools, from mentoring and monitoring student consumption to educating them about healthy eating patterns. By making educators beneficiaries, the government wants to ensure that this group also has adequate nutritional intake to remain productive in carrying out their strategic role.
Furthermore, the expansion of the MBG program to Family Welfare Movement (PKK) and integrated health service post (Posyandu) cadres strongly signals that the government is prioritizing cross-sector synergy in nutrition education. These cadres are at the forefront of grassroots health advocacy and play a crucial role in the success of nutrition education programs for the community. By becoming beneficiaries, they are expected to become more empowered in delivering nutrition literacy and supporting the program’s sustainability.
Infrastructure readiness is crucial to ensuring the optimal implementation of the MBG program throughout Indonesia, including remote areas. The Head of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN), Dadan Hindayana, stated that his institution is accelerating the development of Nutrition Fulfillment Service Units (SPPG) in various hard-to-reach locations. Dadan explained that 8,200 SPPGs have been identified and are under construction, with 4,700 units currently under construction. Approximately 170 units are targeted for completion by December 2025. Meanwhile, in agglomeration areas, the government is targeting 20,000 SPPGs to be operational by the same period. According to Dadan, if all development goes according to plan, 82.9 million beneficiaries will be evenly distributed by March or April 2026.
The development of the SPPG demonstrates the government’s commitment to creating a nutritious food distribution system that prioritizes sustainability at the local level, not just on a large scale. With increasingly comprehensive infrastructure, the MBG has the potential to improve food security for the poor, expand access to nutrition for children, and support logistical efficiency in previously isolated areas.
The effectiveness of the MBG is increasingly evident in the food distribution achievements, which have exceeded initial projections. President Prabowo Subianto previously stated that MBG food production had exceeded two billion servings, far exceeding the initial target of 1.8 billion servings. This achievement demonstrates that the program’s implementing ecosystem, from local governments and educational institutions to local food businesses, is able to work synergistically. The production of two billion servings of food is not merely a statistic, but reflects a direct impact on the growth and development of millions of Indonesian children who have long faced nutritional disparities.
Expanding the MBG program to educators should be seen as a visionary step that strengthens the national education ecosystem.Healthy and well-nourished teachers will be better prepared to assist students in the learning process. The excellent physical and mental condition of educators will create a more productive, conducive school environment, oriented toward strengthening children’s character. Furthermore, nutritional interventions for educators will also encourage improved professional well-being, especially for contract teachers and teachers in remote areas who are vulnerable to economic constraints.
When schools become centers of nutritional interventions involving teachers, students, and the community, a holistic model of human development is created. Children who receive nutritious food daily will grow healthier, have better concentration, and have the potential to achieve higher academic achievement. At the same time, the presence of educators who share in the benefits of the program creates a mutually empowering educational ecosystem.
Expanding the beneficiaries of the MBG program to various groups is a step that not only addresses health aspects but also strengthens national social solidarity. When schoolchildren, teachers, the elderly, the poor, and even health workers experience the same benefits, the MBG transforms into a strategic program that unites all elements of the nation in a single national vision: to create a future generation that is healthy, intelligent, and ready to compete.
)* The author is a social observer