"Many people think that (nutritional fulfillment for) the first 1,000 days is enough, or until elementary school age. However, we need to carry out this intervention until high school,"
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Head of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN), Dadan Hindayana, on Thursday shared some reasons for the provision of free nutritious meals to students until high school.

"There is a second critical point in child development at the age of 8–17 years old. If we do not intervene properly in this second period, muscle growth will still not be optimal," he said during a hearing meeting with Commission IX of the House of Representatives (DPR) in Jakarta.

He noted that many people have misconceptions about the appropriate diet for the junior high and high school ages. At those ages, children need nutritious food for brain and muscle development.

"Many people think that (nutritional fulfillment for) the first 1,000 days is enough, or until elementary school age. However, we need to carry out this intervention until high school," he emphasized.

According to him, the first critical stage for addressing stunting is the first 1,000 days of life (age 0–2 years). Therefore, the targets for free nutritious meals also include pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers, and toddlers.

He also presented data showing that most children in Indonesia are born into poor families.

"Based on data from Statistics Indonesia (BPS), the average household members in the upper class is 2.84. It means that out of 100 rich families, 84 families have one child, while 16 families have no children at all," he informed.

However, poor families have 4.78 family members. This means that out of 100 poor families, 78 families have three children, and only 22 families have two children, he said.

Hindaya then cited data obtained from the pilot of the free nutritious meal program in Sukabumi, West Java, which shows that the average child is born into a poor family with an average income of Rp1 million per month (US$63).

"Some even have an average income below one million. If we do not intervene now, our population in 2045 will be full of children born into poor families," he said.

He added that his agency will form a Nutritious Food Service Unit in regions to make 3 thousand meal portions to meet the program's target.



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Translator: Lintang Budiyanti P, Resinta Sulistiyandari
Editor: Arie Novarina
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