Pigai Ensures Ministry Of Human Rights Participates In Monitoring MBG

Human Rights Minister Natalius Pigai (center) after giving a statement to the press regarding the Free Nutrition Food program at the Ministry of Human Rights Office, Jakarta, Wednesday (1/10/2025). (ANTARA/Fath Putra Mulya)

JAKARTA - Human Rights Minister (HAM) Natalius Pigai stated that the Ministry of Human Rights will participate in supervising the implementation of the Free Nutrition Food (MBG) program after coordinating is completed with the National Nutrition Agency (BGN).

Pigai explained that both parties are currently preparing a memorandum of understanding (MoU). The cooperation agreement between the Ministry of Human Rights and BGN is scheduled to be signed next week.

"Just now I have, even the Head of BGN himself told me, 'Mr. Pigai now starting next week we will MoU for the Ministry of Human Rights to come down to be with us to ensure and maintain [MBG implementation]'," he said as quoted by ANTARA, Wednesday, October 1.

According to Pigai, a request to oversee the MBG program came from the Head of BGN Dadan Hindayana.

"He himself proactively asked me to participate in carrying out the implementation of MBG optimally," he said.

He also said that his party was committed to accompanying the implementation of the program to fulfill nutritional needs through MBG so that it would be controlled in the human rights corridor. In later supervision, Pigai promised the Ministry of Human Rights would act fairly.

"If something goes wrong, we will remind you. The food is stale, the management is not good, the food is not on time, the distribution is not good enough, we will definitely remind the Head of BGN," he said.

Although the new surveillance task will be carried out, Pigai said that the regional offices of the Ministry of Human Rights in various regions have gone to the field to check the situation that occurred in response to reports of poisoning.

He admitted that the implementation of the MBG program could not be separated from obstacles, namely in the form of irregularities or deviations. Pigai's deviations include production and supervision.

"It exists, but it happens at certain points. Not all of them," he said.

Specifically regarding production irregularities, the Minister of Human Rights highlighted the issue of cooking skills and differences in distribution quality and food storage for raw materials.

According to him, the amount of irregularities in the implementation of MBG so far has only been 0.0017 percent since it was launched at the beginning of last year. "So overall, actually 99 percent of MBG implementation until today has succeeded," he said.

Apart from that, the Regional Office of the Ministry of Human Rights also found positive findings from the implementation of MBG, such as fostering a spirit of learning and fostering independence, caring for each other to help, and solidarity among students.