Budget Absorption Increases Effectiveness of MBG Implementation

Jakarta – The government continues to demonstrate a strong commitment to strengthening basic services for the community, one of which is through the implementation of the Free Nutritious Meal Program (MBG). This program is designed as part of a national effort to address the nutritional problems of school children, reduce stunting, and improve the quality of human resources from an early age.

The Chairman of the National Economic Council (DEN), Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan suggested that the Nutrition Fulfillment Service Unit (SPPG), which currently functions as a kitchen providing nutritious food, purchase raw materials from vegetable farmers, egg farmers, and food MSME actors around them. This step is expected to create a mutually supportive local ecosystem.

“By supporting the purchase of local raw materials from farmers and MSME actors around the SPPG, the economic benefits of the MBG program will expand and be felt directly by the surrounding community. This will create a mutually supportive ecosystem, which will ultimately strengthen the local economy,” said Luhut

Despite having a noble goal, the implementation of this program requires very large budget support from the government. Even in the initial stage alone, the funds that have been allocated have reached tens of trillions of rupiah.

The budget is expected to continue to increase along with the expansion of the coverage area, the increase in the number of beneficiaries, and efforts to improve the quality of food provided.

The surge in budget absorption for the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program from June to December 2025 cannot be separated from the ambitious target set by President Prabowo Subianto, namely to reach 82.9 million recipients throughout Indonesia.

The Head of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN), Dadan Hindayana, in a working meeting with Commission IX of the DPR explained that the large budget requirement is a natural consequence of the very large scale of the program.

“So if it is now IDR 71 trillion, an additional IDR 50 trillion will be enough to serve all beneficiaries until December 2025,” said Dadan.

This statement is in line with the tendency of consistent increase in budget absorption from month to month. Meanwhile, if the additional budget of IDR 50 trillion mentioned by Dadan is actually allocated until the end of the year, then this shows that the government’s fiscal strategy is aggressive but still prepared with careful calculations.

The performance of program implementation has also become more measurable along with the strengthening of the data-based reporting and monitoring system. With an effectively managed budget foundation, the MBG Program is expected to continue to grow and reach more targets in the years to come. The success of increasing budget absorption also serves as an important lesson for various other social assistance programs and community-based interventions.