September 22, 2025 | 11:10 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Head of Indonesia's National Nutrition Agency (BGN), Dadan Hindayana, has unveiled President Prabowo Subianto's plan to meet with all partners of the Free Nutritious Meals program (MBG). Dadan disclosed this plan during a press conference at his office in Jakarta on Monday, September 22, 2025.
During the event, Dadan shared the details of his conversation with Prabowo when the President unexpectedly contacted him on Monday afternoon, September 22, 2025. Dadan mentioned that Prabowo wanted to convey several messages to all the partners providing meals for the program.
Dadan stated that the meeting would take place after the President's return from New York, USA. Currently, the president is in the United States to attend the 80th United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, September 23, 2025.
"The President wants to address all partners to ensure the careful implementation of the nutritious meal program," said Dadan Hindayana at his office in Central Jakarta, on Monday, September 22, 2025.
Moreover, Dadan revealed that Prabowo will also emphasize the optimal and non-misappropriated utilization of the allocated funds. As a specific example, Dadan stated that Prabowo only wants eggs to be cooked in two ways: either fried or boiled whole.
Dadan mentioned that Prabowo desires each child to receive their designated portion, which is one egg per student. "So, he doesn't want the eggs to be mixed or used in omelets. Because if used in omelets, for seven people, only five eggs will be enough," he said.
According to Dadan, Prabowo has recently shown heightened attention to the free nutritious meal program. The Head of State often contacts him spontaneously to check on progress, such as the operational Nutrition Fulfillment Service (SPPG) count and the number of recipients, as well as various current issues affecting the program. "The President's attention to detail is remarkable," he added.
The free nutritious meal program is one of Prabowo's signature initiatives and was included in his campaign promises for the 2024 presidential election. Prabowo aims to have this program benefit 82.9 million people, including schoolchildren, pregnant women, and toddlers.
This year, the government has allocated Rp171 trillion from the state budget for this program. Recently, there has been increasing public scrutiny of this large-scale program following several poisoning incidents in various regions. Since its launch in January 2025, the National Nutrition Agency has recorded 4,711 suspected cases of poisoning after consuming a free nutritious meal.
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