Low Student Fitness Rate, Minister Of Health Urges To Strengthen Sports

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia (Kemenkes) revealed that as many as 33 percent of students in Indonesia experienced a low level of fitness. This finding comes from the Free Health Check (CKG) program which was held in a number of People's Schools in mid-July 2025.

The Indonesian Minister of Health, Budi Gunadi Sadikin, expressed his concern about the low level of student fitness. He emphasized the importance of physical activity and regular exercise in the lives of children.

"33 percent is less fitness level. Children are now less exercising," said the Minister of Health at a press conference at the Ministry of Health on Thursday, July 31, 2025.

This fitness problem ranks second of the various health issues found in the CKG program. In first place is dental health problems, which 49 percent of students experience.

Meanwhile, anemia is the third most health problem, with a prevalence of 26.6 percent.

In response to these findings, the Minister of Health stated that his party would cooperate with the Ministry of Elementary and Secondary Education (Kemendikdasmen).

One of the concrete steps that have been taken is the launch of the Great Indonesian Children's Gymnastics program, an initiative to encourage physical activity in the school environment.

In addition to the physical aspect, children's mental health is also the focus of the CKG program. Mental health checks began to be introduced in this program due to growing concerns about psychological disorders in school children.

"For free health check at this school introduces mental health checks. Because many have not been able to identify if there are mental problems in our children," explained the Minister of Health.

He added several factors that could trigger mental health problems among students, including excessive use of gadgets and exposure to content on social media.

"We see that quite a lot of people also experience anxiety, depression, maybe mostly see gadgets, so read all kinds of social media. Now that's what we're starting to measure," he added.

The Free Health Check (CKG) program was first launched in February 2025 and has reached around 16.4 million people. Every day, this program serves between 280 thousand and 300 thousand participants.

Starting August 4, 2025, to coincide with the beginning of the new school year, the government will hold CKG simultaneously in all schools in Indonesia. This initiative aims to carry out early detection of children's physical and mental health problems, as well as to encourage a healthy lifestyle from an early age.