Jakarta. Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman said that President-elect Prabowo Subianto's flagship program, free nutritious meals for students, has the potential to boost the rural economy.

According to Amran, the larger the budget allocated for this program, the more traders, farmers, and livestock breeders in villages will be involved.

"The production will be carried out in villages, so the village economy will be stimulated. Imagine if the budget reaches hundreds of trillions, it could drive the rural economy," Amran said during the Investor Daily Roundtable event titled "Ensuring Food Governance Towards Food Security" held at Hutan Kota by Plataran, Jakarta, on Tuesday.

The initiative aims to gradually cover approximately 82.9 million students by 2029, requiring an estimated total budget of Rp 400 trillion ($24.5 billion). President Joko Widodo's Administration has allocated Rp 71 trillion in the 2025 Draft State Budget (RAPBN) for this purpose.

Amran explained that the budget for free nutritious meals would be used to prepare raw food materials, ranging from vegetables, chicken eggs, and chicken meat to various types of fish.

"Around 95 percent of the raw materials are sourced domestically. Therefore, we hope to include vegetables, eggs, chicken, freshwater and marine fish," said Amran.

Amran is also optimistic that the free nutritious meals program will be successfully implemented in the first year of Prabowo's administration in 2025.

The Investor Daily Roundtable (IDRT), held at Rumah Kaca Melati, Hutan Kota by Plataran, Jakarta, featured Agriculture Minister Amran Sulaiman and ID Food CEO Sis Apik Wijayanto. The discussion, moderated by B-Universe Executive Chairman Enggartiasto Lukita, delved into governance strategies to achieve national food security.

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