By: Dhika Permadi)*
The Free Nutritious Meal Program (MBG) initiated by the government is currently a very strategic real step in eradicating extreme poverty in various regions of Indonesia. Not only does it provide direct benefits to the community in terms of nutrition, this program also opens up economic opportunities and creates jobs on a large scale. Therefore, it is only right that the public pay more attention to the success of this program and support its sustainability.
Head of the National Nutrition Agency, Dadan Hindayana highlighted how strong the impact of MBG is in empowering the community, especially the group of productive-age housewives who have not been absorbed by the labor market. He said that now there are thousands of mothers aged between 40 and 45 years who previously had no income, now get a fixed salary of Rp2 million per month through their involvement in the Nutrition Fulfillment Service Unit (SPPG).
In Dadan’s view, this is a concrete form of economic empowerment, which has a direct impact on the elimination of extreme poverty. Because by having a fixed income, groups that were previously categorized as vulnerable can now be more independent and empowered.
Dadan Hindayana also revealed that the domino effect of implementing the MBG program is very broad. Each SPPG unit employs at least 50 direct workers. If the target of 30 thousand SPPGs can be realized throughout Indonesia, then this program can open up around 1.5 million new jobs only from the nutritious food provision sector.
And that does not include the impact on small and micro business actors who are partners in providing raw materials such as eggs, vegetables, rice, flour, noodles, and even the management of used cooking oil waste. In the pilot project implemented in Warung Kiara, Sukabumi, all suppliers who collaborated with this program were new entrepreneurs who were created thanks to the encouragement and opportunities from the implementation of MBG. This means that each SPPG unit has the potential to create at least 15 new entrepreneurs, strengthening the food sector from upstream to downstream.
Until April 2025, more than a thousand SPPG units have been operating in various regions, precisely 1,009. The short-term target is to increase it to 1,533 units in the near future. Interestingly, the infrastructure development for this program does not rely at all on funds from the State Budget (APBN).
All facilities were established through strategic partnerships with micro-enterprises, restaurants, and catering service providers that were previously threatened with bankruptcy due to economic challenges. This shows that the government has succeeded in encouraging synergy between social programs and the revival of the people’s economy.
Chairman of the National Economic Council, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, also made a firm statement that this program is a precise strategy to reduce dependence on imported food products while strengthening the national food industry.
He saw that this step not only increased the income of local farmers and MSMEs, but also strengthened the domestic food supply chain. Although some food ingredients are still produced abroad, the government continues to strive to build national production capacity so that it can meet all domestic needs independently. This is a long-term strategy that not only sides with the common people, but also strengthens Indonesia’s food security.
In many areas, the implementation of the MBG program shows the government’s seriousness in involving local farmers and producers directly. The approach used is a partnership between local governments and food cooperatives that accelerates the process of distributing food ingredients from producers to SPPG.
This mechanism is very helpful in maintaining price stability and ensuring increased welfare for agricultural and food sector actors. Farmers are no longer overshadowed by market uncertainty because their products have a definite purpose, namely to support the need for free nutritious food for the community.
Prof. Arief Anshory Yusuf, who is a Professor at the Faculty of Economics and Business, Padjadjaran University and a member of the National Economic Council, sees great potential from the MBG program in reducing poverty rates. In his analysis, this program can reduce poverty rates by up to 5.8 percent.
However, he emphasized that the achievement is highly dependent on the existence of supporting policies that maintain the quality of local products. This means that food safety must be a priority, with the implementation of high standards so that there is no difference in quality between domestic and imported products. That way, consumers also get nutritious food that is safe and of high quality.
In addition to quality standards, the form of assistance from the government is also very crucial. This effort includes counseling to farmers and local business actors about the importance of nutrition, as well as support for agricultural and livestock technology so that their production can meet the MBG program standards. This assistance not only increases production volume, but also the competitive value of local products in the national market.
The free nutritious meal program is proof that public policy can have a big impact if it is designed with a holistic approach and is oriented towards people’s welfare. MBG has proven that economic empowerment, strengthening local industries, and eliminating extreme poverty can go hand in hand.
Therefore, we as a society should support the sustainability of this program, not only as beneficiaries, but also as part of the change towards a more sovereign Indonesia in food and more equitable in welfare.
)* The author is a contributor to the Jendela Baca Institute
