Jakarta. President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo said Tuesday that Indonesia's fight against stunting could not solely depend on providing nutritious food for children.

Sanitation, among others, is also key to the government’s dream of slashing the national stunting rate to 14 percent by this year, according to Jokowi. Indonesia’s stunting rate stood at 37 percent in 2014, which happened to be Jokowi’s first year in office. The populous country has lowered the stunting rate to 21.6 percent in 2022. Jokowi admitted that it would take hard work to achieve the targeted 14 percent.

“We started out with 37 percent about ten years ago, and now it has drastically dropped to 21 percent. But lowering [stunting rate] from 21 percent to 14 percent is not as easy or fast as before. Because tackling stunting isn’t just about providing nutritious meals,” Jokowi told reporters during his visit to Jayapura.

“It is also about sanitation, where we live and the surroundings, as well as clean water. Everything has to be well-consolidated and that’s what we will continue to work on,” Jokowi said.

The state-run food holding ID Food has been distributing chicken meat and egg assistance to families at risk of stunting. 

According to the 2024 UNICEF’s WASH Acts newsletter, 8.3 percent of Indonesian households do not have access to improved water. As many as 4.2 percent of Indonesian households still practice open defecation, meaning they defecate outside rather than going to the toilet.

Jokowi’s second term will end in October. Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto will take over the top government job. 

Since the campaign season, Prabowo has been making headlines for his plans to feed school children across the archipelago free lunches. This policy has been subject to many rumors, the latest being Prabowo’s government possibly cutting the budget from the initial Rp 15,000 ($0.92) to Rp 7,500 each. 

Vice President-Elect Gibran Rakabuming Raka recently denied the budget cut rumors, even saying that “we cannot be stingy when it comes to our children.” The free school meal program is currently undergoing trials so the incoming government has a better picture of what would be the best scheme. The trial runs will go on until October.

But Prabowo’s campaign manifesto showed that the free school meal program was not the president-elect’s only strategy to tackle stunting. He plans on improving households’ access to clean water and sanitation to make sure Indonesian children can grow up healthy. Prabowo promises affordable housing with decent sanitation for people in need. He vowed to build or renovate 40 houses per village or ward each year.