Free Nutritious Meals, Government Program for Investing in the Future of the Young Generation
JAKARTA – The Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) Program is one of the government’s flagship programs that is considered a significant investment for the future of Indonesia’s young generation. This program was revealed by President Prabowo Subianto when he was a speaker at the 2025 World Government Summit.
On that occasion, President Prabowo emphasized that the MBG program, which seems simple, has a major impact on the nation’s development in the future. He explained that this program will be implemented in 330,000 schools, from remote areas to city centers throughout Indonesia.
“When implemented in hundreds of thousands of schools, precisely 330,000 schools, from remote villages to dynamic city centers, this is a significant investment for our future. Our goal in this program is to cover more than 85 million children and pregnant women in Indonesia,” said President Prabowo.
The MBG program not only focuses on meeting the nutritional needs of children, but also becomes a strategic step to create a healthy and intelligent generation. The government considers that adequate nutrition from an early age greatly determines the quality of Indonesia’s human resources in the future. Through balanced nutritional intake, it is hoped that Indonesian children can grow optimally, both physically and mentally.
Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Technology (Wamendiktisaintek) Fauzan also supports this program as part of efforts to achieve the vision of Indonesia Emas 2045. According to Fauzan, the MBG program not only has an impact on health aspects, but also on the mental development, character, and quality of education of the younger generation.
“With this Free Nutritious Meal program, it is hoped that all elements, all higher education institutions will collaborate to welcome Indonesia Emas 2045. Higher education institutions have an important role in overseeing this program, both in the form of studies and governance qualitatively and quantitatively,” explained Wamen Fauzan.
The MBG program is a real form of the government’s seriousness in preparing a strong and quality generation in the future. In addition to providing direct benefits in the form of fulfilling nutritional needs, this program is also expected to reduce stunting rates and improve students’ concentration and learning achievement at school.
Various parties are also expected to play an active role in making this program a success, starting from local governments, schools, to the wider community. With the synergy of all elements of the nation, the Free Nutritious Meal program is believed to be able to become a strong foundation in creating a healthy, intelligent, and highly competitive golden generation of Indonesia.
This program is also a symbol of the government’s commitment to realizing equitable development throughout the country. Through Free Nutritious Meals, the government wants to ensure that every Indonesian child, without exception, gets the same rights to grow and develop optimally.
Thus, the Free Nutritious Meal program is not just a matter of providing food at school, but a strategic step that is a valuable investment for the future of the nation. The government is optimistic that this program will become a solid foundation in realizing Indonesia’s great ideals as a developed country in 2045. [-red]
