MBG Supervisor Ready To Taste Food Before Being Eaten By Students

JAKARTA - Wawan Kurniawan, a supervisor who is also the Head of the East Jakarta City Madrasah Supervisory Working Group (Pokjawas), expressed the full readiness of madrasa teachers and supervisors in overseeing the distribution of the Free Nutrition Food (MBG) program.

"This MBG program is not just free food, but a nutritional intervention that has a direct impact on children's learning skills. We supervisors are ready to help ensure that the food received by students is safe, healthy, and balanced nutritious according to our inherent supervisory role," said Wawan in Jakarta, Tuesday, October 7.

He explained that madrasa supervisors have a moral responsibility in the success of this government program.

"Supervisors can contribute according to their roles, especially to ensure that the menu presented is healthy and safe to consume", he continued.

This step, he said, is a form of teacher moral and professional responsibility to ensure this program can have an impact on improving the quality of education.

"If you taste food, it's done to make sure the children eat healthy, it's part of our humanitarian and professional duties as educators. We don't want any students to be harmed because of the poor quality of food. In the field, this is already running as an unwritten standard procedure," he stressed.

Wawan added, since the launch of MBG in early 2025, many madrasas in East Jakarta have reported an increase in student attendance and focus. Children who were previously weak or not in breakfast are now more guaranteed a balanced nutritional intake and in the long term are expected to be able to increase the enthusiasm of students in class.

"The impact is real. Many teachers report that children are more active in taking lessons, especially at morning hours. This shows the importance of balanced nutrition for the strength of concentration," he said.

Furthermore, he appreciated President Prabowo Subianto's policy of issuing a Presidential Regulation (Perpres) on MBG governance to strengthen kitchen, distribution and supervision standards.

"We believe, with layered supervision and a professional kitchen system, the risk of incidents such as poisoning can be reduced to a minimum. Because public concerns are the main issue of hygiene and security factors, this needs to be the focus of attention and improvement of all organizers, especially BGN or the government", he said. According to him, what is important now is to ensure that supervision runs in order to realize this good program.

"Many school principals I talk to both in madrasas and public schools support this program because there are indeed many positive impacts. We are ready in the field, because this is not just a matter of policy, but about the future of the nation's children," he concluded.