Jakarta. An analyst recently said that President Prabowo Subianto’s signature free meal program should have prioritized regions with high stunting rates. This way, the government would not need to cut ministerial spending to channel the money to the budget-heavy school-feeding program.

Prabowo has instructed to cut a combined budget of Rp 306.7 trillion (around $18 billion) for this fiscal year. About Rp 256.1 trillion of those budget trims would come from ministerial spending. Indonesia would also cut the money allocated for regional governments by around Rp 50.1 trillion. The trimmed funding would mainly get reallocated to Prabowo’s free meal program.

Public policy expert Agus Pambagio recently said that Prabowo’s austerity policy should not sacrifice sectors other than the school feeding initiative. 

“If it is true that these budget cuts are for the free meal program, the government needs to reconsider it. You don’t have to do it just for the sake of delivering your campaign promises if there is not enough state budget,” Agus said over the weekend. 

The free meal program, which has passed its one-month mark, was at the heart of Prabowo’s election campaign. When he ran for president, Prabowo said that feeding children around the country nutrient-rich meals can help bring down the national stunting rate. This is expected to improve human capital development and eventually translate into greater growth. The government has allocated Rp 71 trillion in state spending for the free meal rollout this year. Finance Minister Sri Mulyani recently gave hints that the government would increase the budget meant for the free meal program to Rp 171 trillion.

Agus said that it would be best for the rollout to take place in phases, starting out with regions that have high stunting rates. Indonesia’s national stunting rate stood at 21.5 percent as of 2023. However, the stunting rate varies across the country. The figures in the metropolis of Jakarta reached 17.6 percent, and the province has seen rollouts of free meals in some schools. It could even top 30 percent in the country’s remote regions like Papua. As a case in point, the stunting rate in Central Papua hit 39.4 percent, while the numbers could reach 37.9 percent in East Nusa Tenggara. 

“It is best that the free nutritious meal program prioritizes regions with high stunting rates, including Ambon, East Nusa Tenggara, and Aceh. We don’t have to do it every single school day for the initial phase. Perhaps once a week,” Agus said. 

“The government needs to find the balance. Don’t let this budget efficiency affect other sectors that also need funding,” the analyst added.