Jakarta. Think-tank Celios recently said that Rp 50.7 trillion ($3.1 billion) worth of state spending meant for the free meal program might go to rich kids amidst President Prabowo Subianto’s budget efficiency measures.

President Prabowo Subianto has ordered his government to cut spending by Rp 306.7 trillion to fulfill his campaign promises, particularly the multi-billion dollar free meal for children program.

The government-aided distribution of nutrient-rich meals to kids and expectant mothers across the country seeks to combat stunted growth due to malnutrition.

A Celios report, however, advised the government against using every penny of the saved money from the massive budget cuts for the free meal program. Indonesia has already allotted Rp 71 trillion for the free meal rollout in the 2025 fiscal year. The archipelagic country has earmarked an additional Rp 100 trillion to fund the program that aims to feed 82 million individuals by 2029. 

Celios said that they did not oppose the idea of Prabowo’s school meal rollout and his budget cut orders. However, the research body believes that the government should reconsider its universal coverage approach in its distribution, citing that approximately Rp 50.7 trillion spent on the free lunch could go to rich kids if Prabowo still insists on feeding every child in the country. By not splurging Rp 306.7 trillion on the school-feeding initiative, Indonesia can direct a large portion of that money to fund other social welfare programs.

“Our fiscal room is not enough to feed every child. There is a possibility of a mistargeted distribution,” Media Wahyudi Askar, a director at Celios, told an online briefing on Monday. 

He added: “Rich families are even aware that they do not deserve the free meals. Their kids also bring home the lunch they receive at school so that they can give it to their helpers.”

Celios joined the chorus of voices that urged the school feeding program should prioritize the children who grow up in Indonesia’s remote areas. The think-tank wrote that the rollout would be better targeted for children from households who earn less than Rp 2 million a month, as well as toddlers and expectant mothers in need of extra nutrition. Such a targeted approach would mean that the government would only have to spend Rp 117.9 trillion annually for the free meal rollout, according to the report. 

The think tank listed what better ways to spend the Rp 306.7 trillion of the saved money, saying that the government would only need to allocate Rp 46.9 trillion of that amount for the free meal program. 

The remaining Rp 259.8 trillion could go into other programs, including the so-called Family Hope Program (PKH), a conditional cash transfer that targets Indonesia’s low-income families. Celios’ estimates showed that the government could channel about Rp 30.4 trillion to PKH. This way, Indonesia could expand its reach to almost 10.2 million families. Each household could get about Rp 3 trillion in PKH cash transfers. As many as Rp 5.7 trillion saved from the budget cuts could also help pay off the overdue incentives of lecturers that span between 2020 and 2024. The money could pay 47,043 lecturers.

"If the government wishes to cut spending, they have to allocate the saved money for the right things such as social protection programs that are really needed by the people," Media Wahyudi said.