Head of BGN's Legal and Public Relations Bureau, Lalu Muhammad Iwan Mahardan, confirmed on Monday that school students will be the first priority of the free meals program in January 2025.
Earlier, in a statement from his office on Sunday (January 5), Head of the Presidential Communication Office, Hasan Nasbi, stated that the number of kitchens providing food for the free meals program is targeted to reach five thousand by the end of 2025.
Those kitchens are expected to be able to provide food to up to 20 million beneficiaries comprising students, under-five children, pregnant women, and breastfeeding women.
Currently, 190 Nutritional Fulfillment Service Units (SPPG) or kitchens are ready to operate, spread over 26 provinces in the country.
Based on information obtained by ANTARA, several ministers and officials are scheduled to monitor the provision of free meals on the first day of implementation.
Head of the Presidential Communication Office Hasan Nasbi will visit the Tanah Sereal SPPG, Bogor, while Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Bima Arya Sugiarto will visit the Bina Insani SPPG and the Bina Insani Bosowa School in Bogor.
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Communication and Digital Affairs Minister Meutya Hafid is scheduled to oversee the program's implementation at Cilangkap 5 Public Elementary School in Depok, while Cooperatives Minister Budi Arie Setiadi will assess it at Halim 05 Elementary School, East Jakarta.
Deputy Minister of Social Affairs Agus Jabo will evaluate the implementation at Palmerah SPPG, Jakarta, while Deputy Minister of Primary and Secondary Education Atip Latipulhayat will check on it at Bojong Koneng SPPG, Karawang.
Furthermore, Primary and Secondary Education Minister Abdul Mu'ti will conduct monitoring at a junior high school and a high school in Semarang, Central Java.
The Free Nutritious Meals program is one of the work programs of President Prabowo Subianto and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka for their 2024–2029 term.
A budget of Rp71 trillion (nearly US$4.4 billion) is allocated for the program.
The government formed the BGN in August 2024 to support the program's implementation.
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Translator: Lintang Budiyanti, Raka Adji
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
Copyright © ANTARA 2025
