Fadli Zon: MBG Service Program, Its Management Must Be Corrected

Minister of Culture Fadli Zon emphasized that the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) program is a public service program aimed at improving the quality of people's nutrition. (IST)

JAKARTA - Minister of Culture Fadli Zon emphasized that the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) program is a public service program aimed at improving the quality of people's nutrition. Therefore, what must be corrected is the management if there are irregularities, not the purpose of the program.

"Regarding MBG, I think the principle of this program is very good," said Fadli when talking to reporters at the Ministry of Culture Office, Jakarta, Wednesday (17/6/2026).

The Deputy Chairperson of the Gerindra Party said that the idea of providing nutritious food was actually not new for President Prabowo Subianto. He recalled how Prabowo had long been concerned about improving people's nutrition, including through the "White Revolution" idea which he had once delivered while leading the Indonesian Farmers' Unity (HKTI).

According to Fadli, MBG was designed from the beginning as a service program for the community. In fact, in the early stages, it was not easy to invite various parties to participate in its implementation.

However, after the program scheme was running, the interest to participate increased rapidly. At this point, said Fadli, there is a risk that some parties are more oriented towards profit than the spirit of service.

"In fact, the purpose of this program is a service program. There are benefits for sure, but the benefits have been limited," he said.

Fadli then alluded to a corruption case that dragged the leadership of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN). According to Fadli, the case must be an important lesson to strengthen supervision and improve program governance.

"The wrong thing is corruption. The wrong thing is if he is corrupt," said Fadli.

He assessed that various issues that arise must be used as a material for evaluation so that the implementation of MBG will be better in the future. Improving governance is considered important so that the main purpose of the program is maintained and the benefits are truly felt by the community.

According to Fadli, evaluation also needs to be carried out on the implementation of programs in the field. The government can continue to improve the MBG scheme, including adjusting it to the needs and conditions of each region.

He assessed that the lagging, leading, and outermost regions (3T) required special attention because the challenges of access and nutritional fulfillment were different from urban areas. In addition, the involvement of school canteens in the MBG ecosystem can also be one of the options that can be studied in the improvement of the program.

On the other hand, the implementation of MBG in large cities, including Jakarta, according to him, can be further evaluated so that its implementation is truly in accordance with the needs. Certain schools that have the ability to provide nutritional services independently can be part of the discussion in the evaluation.

Fadli also denied the assumption that MBG was run for electoral interests.

"If someone says this is an electoral issue, where is the election?" he said.

According to Fadli, criticism of MBG is a natural thing. However, what needs to be the focus is to improve its implementation if problems are found, while still maintaining the main purpose of the program to improve the nutritional quality of the community.