“The MBG program remains in place, but for now we are focusing on serving pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers, and toddlers,” said Risca Christina, the agency’s Bali coordinator, in Denpasar on Tuesday.
She said the decision was taken for practical reasons, as schoolchildren - who account for the majority of the program’s more than 60 million beneficiaries nationwide - have been on holiday since last week, making it difficult to organize meal distribution through schools.
By contrast, she said, reaching the three priority groups was considered more feasible due to cooperation between MBG kitchens and integrated health posts, known locally as posyandu, across Bali.
“We are directing MBG kitchens to coordinate with field officers from posyandu or the National Population and Family Planning Agency to gather beneficiaries from the three priority groups (3B) for meal distribution,” she said.
Christina added that both school administrators and teachers understood the approach, noting that similar temporary adjustments had been made during previous holiday periods.
Although distribution to students has been paused during the break, she said the agency and its partner kitchens remain ready to serve schools that request meal packages.
“The program does not require distribution during school holidays. However, we are prepared to deliver meals to schools that are willing to assemble their students,” she said.
While the Bali office has yet to compile detailed data on the exact number of beneficiaries from the three groups, it reported that 147 of the 178 MBG kitchens in the province are currently serving them.
“We can confirm that beneficiaries from these priority groups across all districts and cities in Bali are receiving meals on a daily basis,” she said.
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Translator: Ni Putu Putri, Tegar Nurfitra
Editor: Primayanti
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