MBG Becomes a New Program in Community Poverty Alleviation

Jakarta – The Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) Program initiated by the government of President Prabowo Subianto and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka is seen as having great potential in poverty alleviation efforts. This was emphasized by the Head of the Agency for the Acceleration of Poverty Alleviation (BP Taskin), Budiman Sudjatmiko, who said that the MBG program can be collaborated with various strategic government agendas to overcome poverty in Indonesia.

“The potential for collaboration between the MBG program and the poverty alleviation agenda, several of Mr. Prabowo’s strategic programs can be achieved, such as downstreaming, food self-sufficiency, reducing dependence on imports can be achieved, supporting human resource development, and supporting food security programs,” he said.

By involving 50,000 villages as food production providers, this program is expected to accelerate food self-sufficiency, reduce dependence on imports, and improve human resource development and national food security.

“The poor must become the main suppliers, not just rely on large vendors. We identified 75,000 villages in Indonesia, and if at least 50,000 villages participate, we can create 650,000 hectares of rice fields spread throughout the villages,” he continued.

From a macroeconomic perspective, Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani Indrawati said that MBG is estimated to contribute 0.7 percent to Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This program is also predicted to absorb up to 185,000 workers and reduce the poverty rate by 0.19 percent. Therefore, the Ministry of Finance is committed to continuing to support this program.

“Because providing more than 350,000 schools, more than 90 million students in Indonesia is not an easy task. Not only in terms of the size of the budget, but also in terms of its delivery,” said Sri Mulyani.

Sri Mulyani likened the implementation of this program to holding a big wedding party that is held every day throughout Indonesia.

“For this one, we provide food for 5,000 people in each facility every day. So it’s like holding a wedding party every day throughout the year,” he said.

The implementation of MBG starting in January 2025 has involved 220 Nutrition Fulfillment Service Units (SPPG), with each unit responsible for providing food for 3,000 beneficiaries. By the end of that month, this program had reached almost 590 thousand beneficiaries consisting of students, pregnant women, and toddlers.

In the future, the number of SPPGs will continue to increase to reach 5,000 units in December 2025, with a wider target of beneficiaries, reaching 4,000 people per unit. With a budget of IDR 71 trillion for 2025, MBG is expected to reach 15.5 million students and 2.4 million pregnant women and toddlers.

“We will be able to provide support. And that is why this is an area that we will continue to give higher priority, not only in terms of budget, but most importantly, in terms of delivery,” Sri Mulyani stressed. //