JAKARTA - Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa ensures that the budget allocated for education spending remains safe and does not decrease due to the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) program.
"[The education budget] is still safe," Purbaya told reporters at the Ministry of Finance's office, Jakarta, Friday, March 6, reported by ANTARA.
Purbaya explained that the MBG program has its own budget allocation which does not interfere with the routine spending of the education program.
The education budget in the State Budget (APBN) is still allocated at 20 percent as mandated by law.
"The (MBG) budget is only for buying food, but it is not included in education or education is cut," he said.
Previously, the Government confirmed that the 2026 education budget had been agreed upon by the government together with the DPR and the DPR Budget Agency and was not reduced due to the MBG program.
Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya ensured that all strategic education programs such as the Smart Indonesia Card and the Smart Indonesia Program continued to run, accompanied by strengthening access through People's Schools and renovations of around 16,000 schools by 2025 with a budget of Rp. 17 trillion.
He also conveyed that the government had increased teachers' incentives to Rp. 400,000 and non-ASN teachers' allowances from Rp. 1,500,000 to Rp. 2,000,000 in 2025 as part of strengthening the education sector.
The Main Expert of the Indonesian Government Communication Agency, Hariqo Wibawa Satria, also explained that the education budget in 2026 reached Rp. 769.8 trillion, of which there was a component of budget allocation of Rp. 223.5 trillion for the National Nutrition Agency (BGN) to manage the MBG Program.
He emphasized that MBG is an integral part of the education system because nutrition is the foundation for the learning process of students. In addition, various other education programs have not experienced budget reductions, in fact, some of them have increased, such as teacher allowances and educational assistance.
Hariqo also clarified information circulating about the abandoned school because of MBG. This is not true because throughout 2025, 16 thousand schools have been repaired, even in 2026, it is targeted that as many as 71 thousand schools will be equipped with facilities.
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