Beyond its primary duty of safeguarding Indonesia’s vast airspace, the Indonesian Air Force (TNI AU) is striving to broaden its role and involvement in social and welfare initiatives.
Of late, the guardians of airspace have joined efforts to make the Free Nutritious Meals program a success, aligning with President Prabowo Subianto and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka’s resolve to improve Indonesians’ nutritional intake.
Indonesian Air Force (TNI-AU) Chief of Staff Air Chief Marshal Mohamad Tonny Harjono said that the program deserves full support as he is confident in its promise of protecting children from malnutrition, which can disrupt their growth.
He expressed optimism that improvements in nutritional intake will help create a large number of quality and productive talents by the anticipated golden year of 2045.
This has also prompted his decision to establish large-sized kitchens at airbases across Indonesia to supply food for the program.
He assured that all the kitchens will be capable of producing sufficient portions of meals and applying high standards of quality in the entire management and cooking processes of ingredients.
The plan is to operate the kitchens to supply nutritious meals to approximately 2.81 million children, with a special focus on those studying in schools near the airbases.
To that end, the TNI has engaged the National Nutrition Agency (BGN) to help guide and oversee the development of the kitchens, the selection of ingredients, and the cooking process.
Special kitchens
So far, kitchens set up for the Free Nutritious Meals program at several air bases have begun operating and conducting a trial run at local schools.
The operational kitchens include those located in the Halim Perdanakusuma Air Base of Jakarta; Raden Sadjad Air Base of Natuna district, Riau Islands; Zainuddin Abdul Madjid Air Base of Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara; and Abdulrachman Saleh Air Base of Malang, East Java.
Marshal Harjono has set the target of each airbase producing three thousand to four thousand portions of meals daily.
According to him, the airbases will continue the trial to achieve a high level of readiness before the program sees the start of its full roll-out on January 2 next year.
ANTARA had the privilege of exploring one of the operational kitchens located at Jakarta’s Halim Perdanakusuma Air Base.
The kitchen encompassed six sizable rooms, with the main one equipped with two large-sized cooking equipment and a compartment for packaging meals.
Meanwhile, the other rooms were designed for washing food ingredients, processing vegetables, and managing beef, chicken meat, and fish.
It is worth noting that the kitchen has the capacity to produce as many as 11 thousand meal portions daily.
Commander of Halim Perdanakusuma Air Base Air Commodore Muzafar affirmed that the kitchen produces only high-quality food as the entire process is supervised by the BGN.
The target is for the kitchen to supply nutritious meals to over 10 thousand students at 22 schools in the vicinity of the air base.
Moreover, to ensure sufficient ingredients and materials for the kitchen, the management of the airbase has decided to turn 6.5 hectares of its land into an agricultural area.
Perks of involvement
Indonesia’s move to involve its military, in this case, the air force, in the Free Nutritious Meals program is seen as a positive initiative that can help support and accelerate the distribution of nutritious food to all targeted recipients across the country’s vast territory.
Khairul Fahmi, co-founder of the Institute for Security and Strategic Studies, opined that the presence of air force personnel in several regions would allow the TNI AU to fast-track the delivery process.
With sizable kitchens and airbases situated in residential areas, he said, the air force is expected to reach those in need of nutritious meals more easily.
However, the observer noted that it is vital for Indonesia to ensure that its military only plays a supporting role in the program. Non-military institutions must take center stage.
He then emphasized the importance of the TNI AU working in collaboration with regional governments and relevant ministries in implementing the program.
Fahmi also pushed the TNI AU to champion transparency in its involvement in the program. That way, the air force is expected to further elevate the image of Indonesia’s military in the eyes of the public.
By getting involved in the government’s priority program, the TNI AU can make notable contributions to the handling of social issues, proving that its capacity goes beyond protecting the airspace.
The Indonesian nation can expect the Free Nutritious Meals program to pave the way for the birth of a generation of healthy and competitive talents, who are needed to realize the Golden Indonesia 2045 vision.
That dream requires the government to partner with reliable parties, such as the TNI AU, while ensuring transparency in the implementation of the program.
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Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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