Deputy Minister of Primary and Secondary Education Fajar Riza Ul Haq stated that the strengthening of UKS must be carried out collectively because the health of students is the main foundation for successful education.
"Healthy children can learn better, grow up happily, and contribute to the community," he said in a statement issued by the ministry on Wednesday.
In addition, he also underscored the importance of health in education, which not only covers the physical aspect but also the mental, nutritional, social, and emotional aspects.
To this end, the ministry is campaigning "Seven Habits of Great Indonesian Children" which includes exercising regularly, eating a balanced diet, and adopting a healthy lifestyle.
He further said that the government continues to encourage synergy between schools, regional governments, ministries, and agencies in UKS implementation, including providing training to schools' UKS teams.
In the same statement, the Director of Early Childhood Education at the ministry, Gogot Suharwoto, said that UKS is the spearhead of implementing various national priority programs at schools, including Free Nutritious Meals (MBG), Free Health Screening (CKG), and nutritional education.
Furthermore, he underscored the need for support from schools in ensuring adequate facilities, including ensuring the availability of clean water and a proper school health room.
Suharwoto reminded that the number of schools with active UKS needs to be increased, as the current rate is still below 50 percent.
"This is our shared task to encourage schools without a UKS to establish it immediately and reactivate those where the UKS is inactive," he said.
He added that schools with active UKS may also become model schools for others to implement the program fully and continuously.
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Translator: Hana Dewi, Raka Adji
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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