Luhut: 'Stop Arguing About Prabowo's Free Meal Program'

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - National Economic Council Chair Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan has called for a halt to the debate on the free nutritious meal project (MBG). Luhut assesses that Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto's flagship program, funded by state funds, as a good initiative.

"I think we shouldn't argue about the MBG anymore. It's a good thing. It's just the management that needs to be improved," said Luhut after meeting President Prabowo at the Merdeka Palace in Jakarta on Tuesday, June 9, 2026.

The retired military officer stated that the Economic Council, which he leads, had conducted an independent survey professionally at 800 points of nutritious meal service units (SPPG) regarding the implementation of the MBG.

During the occasion, DEN Secretary Septian Hario Seto explained that the survey, funded directly by DEN, was carried out by randomly sampling 800 MBG kitchen points scattered across various regions in Indonesia. Based on the survey results, DEN found new economic opportunities for micro, small, and medium-sized businesses around the SPPG locations.

"The first positive result we found is that 86.9 percent of the existing SPPGs have at least one small supplier. So, these are micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises located near these SPPG locations. On average, each SPPG is linked with three MSMEs," said Seto.

Seto mentioned that the MBG project stimulates the formation of new supply chains involving local businesses. DEN noted that about 65 percent of MSMEs involved in the MBG supply chain come from the same regency as the kitchen location.

"So, it's important to note that these are not large suppliers entering, but these emerging MSMEs are actually located in the same regency or location as the SPPG," he said.

Furthermore, Seto continued, DEN's survey also shows the impact of MBG on the absorption of local labor. "The third finding is that almost 99 percent of the workforce is indeed from the surrounding community," said Seto.

Read: MBG Kitchen Managers, Suppliers Protest at BGN Office

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