Free Nutritious Meal Priority Program Brings Benefits to Reduce Stunting Rates

Jakarta – The Free Nutritious Meal Program (MBG), which is one of the current government’s priorities, is expected to bring broad benefits to the community, especially in efforts to reduce stunting rates in Indonesia. This program includes providing nutritious food for pregnant women, toddlers, and school students through the construction of MBG kitchens in various regions.

Member of Commission IX of the Indonesian House of Representatives, Lucy Kurniasari, highlighted the main challenges in implementing this program, especially in the construction of MBG kitchens. The establishment of MBG kitchens aims to provide closer access to nutritious food to beneficiaries. The government is targeting the establishment of 30 thousand MBG kitchens throughout Indonesia by 2026.

As a non-ministerial state institution, the National Nutrition Agency is committed to supporting the MBG program to improve the quality of life of the community. Lucy emphasized the importance of equal nutrition to realize the vision of Indonesia Emas 2045. “We want to ensure that there are no more high-risk pregnant women or malnourished children in Surabaya. If nutrition is evenly distributed, we are ready to move towards Indonesia Emas 2045,” she said.

Public policy observer Agus Pambagio suggested that the MBG program be focused on areas with high stunting rates. According to him, this step is important so that budget allocation remains balanced and does not sacrifice other programs that are also crucial for the community. He suggested gradual implementation, especially in areas with high stunting prevalence such as Ambon, NTT, and Aceh.

“In my opinion, this free nutritious meal should be prioritized for areas with high stunting rates. For the initial stage, it does not need to be done every day, maybe just one day a week,” explained Agus.

In line with that, the Head of the Representative Office of the Ministry of Population and Family Development (Kemendukbangga) of the Riau Islands Province, Rohina, emphasized the importance of this program in preventing stunting. According to him, ensuring nutritious food intake for school-age children is a strategic step in building a healthier generation.

“Preventing this is one way by providing nutritious food, especially to those programmed by Mr. Prabowo now, namely school children,” said Rohina. By ensuring that children get adequate nutrition from an early age, they have a greater chance of growing up in good health, so that in the future they will also become healthy parents.

Rohina added that if this program is implemented consistently and on target, the acceleration of reducing stunting rates can be achieved better. “Pregnant women who have good nutrition have a smaller chance of giving birth to children with stunting conditions,” she said.

The Free Nutritious Meal Program is expected to be an effective solution in overcoming nutritional problems in Indonesia. With the cooperation of various parties, this program is expected to be able to create a healthier and quality generation towards Indonesia Emas 2045. [-red]