Jakarta. The Constitutional Court ruled on Thursday that the government's Free Nutritious Meals program may no longer be financed through the national education budget, saying such funding violates the constitutional requirement that at least 20% of state spending be allocated to education.

The ruling requires the government to separate the program's funding from the education budget beginning in 2027, with full implementation no later than the 2028 fiscal year.

Chief Justice Suhartoyo said the Free Nutritious Meals program does not constitute a core component of education and therefore should not be included in education operational spending.

"Funding for the Free Nutritious Meals program, which is not a core component of education, must be separated from the operational budget for education no later than the 2028 state budget," he said while reading the court's decision.

The ruling granted a petition filed by the Yayasan Pendidikan Nusantara foundation, which argued that financing the flagship program through the education budget was inconsistent with the 1945 Constitution.

The petitioner maintained that education funding should be reserved for essential educational needs, including school facilities, improving the quality of teaching and learning, teachers' welfare, and expanding access to education.

Constitutional Justice Enny Nurbaningsih said the court did not question the legality of the Free Nutritious Meals program itself, describing it as a legitimate government priority stemming from the 2024 election mandate. However, she said the program must have its own dedicated funding allocation rather than relying on the education budget.

Enny added that the ruling is not retroactive because applying it to the current fiscal year would render the 2026 state budget, already approved by the government and parliament, unconstitutional.

Justice Daniel Yusmic Foekh said the meals program includes expenditures such as kitchen facilities and food quality standards that are unrelated to educational infrastructure, reinforcing the need for separate funding.

State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi said the government respects the court's decision but cannot implement it immediately because changes to the state budget require coordination with the House of Representatives.

"We prepared the budget together with our colleagues in parliament, so we need time," Prasetyo said.