Jakarta. The Prabowo Subianto government had already spent Rp 3 trillion, or approximately $184.8 million, to carry out the nationwide free meal program as of May 21.

Over the past 5 months, Indonesia has been dishing out trays of free daily meals for Indonesian students, starting from those in pre-schools to high schools. Expecting mothers and toddlers also get their share of meals. This massive program is part of Prabowo’s strategy to improve the people’s nutritional intake as the government tries to serve nutrient-packed meals while remaining within the budget. For this year alone, the government has set aside Rp 71 trillion of state money to serve the daily meals.

“We have spent about Rp 3 trillion for the free meal program [since it was launched in early January] as of May 21. These nutritious meals have made their way to about 3.9 million people,” Suahasil told a press conference in Jakarta on Friday.

So far, the government has partnered with 1,386 public kitchens to prepare the meals. 

According to the government’s calculations, the Rp 71 trillion budget should be enough to increase the program’s reach to 17.9 million people, including 15.5 million students, by the end of the year. However, Indonesia has set a more ambitious goal of feeding 82.9 million individuals by the fourth quarter. This would mean that the program would require an even bigger budget. The National Nutrition Agency (BGN), which is in charge of overseeing the free meal program, has requested an additional Rp 100 trillion. This would bring the total annual budget to Rp 171 trillion. Indonesia would also need 32,000 public kitchens, as there would be more mouths to feed.

“Well, we have already prepared an additional Rp 100 trillion in case [the government] wishes to feed 82.9 million people by Q4 2025,” Suahasil said.

Since its launch, the free meal program never failed to escape public spotlight, among others, due to its massive budget and food poisoning incidents. Prabowo even ordered austerity budget measures so his government would have enough money to execute the colossal school feeding program that was a centerpiece in his presidential campaign. 

Despite a Q1 growth slowdown, Prabowo’s brother Hashim Djojohadikusumo recently said that he remained upbeat about Indonesia’s economy. He was even confident that Indonesia could unlock -- or even surpass -- the annual 8 percent growth as targeted by Prabowo. The reason? The government has a list of policies that could spur the economy, and this includes the free meal program. 

“It will be a driver of growth. Imagine there would be 82 million eggs and cartons of milk provided every day,” Hashim told a business conference in Jakarta, while saying that the program could add up to 2 percentage points to the annual economic growth.