Jakarta – The Ministry of Communication and Digital (Komdigi) directly reviewed the implementation of the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) program at SDN Cilangkap 5 and SDN Cilangkap 3, Tapos, Depok. The results of the direct inspection will be used as a basis for evaluation and improvement.
Minister of Communication and Digital Meutya Hafid stated that the government has rolled out the MBG program at 190 locations in 26 provinces.
“We just saw that, thank God, everything went smoothly, from the food delivery process, its preparation, the delivery, to the distribution within the school,” said Meutya after monitoring the Free Nutritious Meal at SDN Cilangkap 5, Depok, Monday (6/1/2025).
Meutya explained that the MBG program can be beneficial and advantageous for both students and Indonesian children. The government, in the MBG program, involves MSMEs in the preparation of the meals, and the military assists in ensuring its smooth implementation.
“So basically, of course, this MBG includes rice, carbohydrates, vegetables, and protein.” The menu is also not made rigidly the same throughout Indonesia, but there are standards,” explained Meutya.
She explained that in the MBG program, the preparation of raw materials will prioritize local strengths such as chicken farms and local wisdom in terms of the menu. When asked about the menu items with different portions, Meutya will add and evaluate them.
“Of course, this is the first day.” So, we as the government are very open to feedback, because indeed on this first day we will see the evaluation. If there are any forgotten things, we will remind the SPPG later,” Meutya explained.
Diversity of Menus According to Each Region
Meutya assessed that the insufficient food portions are a technical issue, suspected to be due to a lack of raw materials and other factors.
“I assure you this is just a matter of forgetfulness, it will be fixed later, just a human error, because one SPPG prepares for approximately 4,000-5,000 beneficiaries and such cases are probably very small, just one or two,” said Meutya.
Meutya revealed that each region implementing the MBG program has a diverse menu with the same budget. According to her, the menu provided in the MBG program will be adjusted to the region.
“So the budget remains the same, we just adjust the food menu.” Including the children’s preferences, which might be different, depending on the region, what they prefer to eat, and so on. So the menu is not standardized,” Meutya explained.
Meutya said that Indonesia has a variety of dishes with different flavors, so it is not forced to have the same menu program.
“This variety of dishes also spans from Sabang to Merauke.” We don’t want to impose a single flavor on all the children. “So this is indeed one of the things we encourage to be different, in accordance with the local wisdom in the region,” concluded Meutya.
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