Prabowo’s flagship programme derives from his campaign promise to provide free, nutritious meals to millions of schoolchildren and pregnant women. - PHOTO: REUTERS
JAKARTA (Bloomberg): Indonesia may need an additional 100 trillion rupiah (US$6.1 billion) this year to expand President Prabowo Subianto’s free lunch program to cover nearly 83 million people by year-end, according to a top official.
"The president has instructed us to accelerate the program,” Dadan Hindayana, head of the national nutrition agency, said in a text message on Saturday. "If the president wants to accelerate the program in September-December, we need 100 trillion rupiah in extra funding,” he added.
Hindayana didn’t say whether Prabowo had approved the additional funding, but the cost may test the former general’s ability to deliver on his promises without jeopardizing the country’s fiscal health.
Indonesia set aside 71 trillion rupiah for the lunch program in the 2025 budget, which was expected to cover up to 17 million people. Costs are expected to climb to to an eventual $30 billion a year as the program is rolled out.
The initial phase, which started at the beginning of this year, provides food to students, with pregnant and breastfeeding women and toddlers to be included at a later stage. The original target was to feed 3 million recipients in January-April.
The program is a result of Prabowo’s campaign promise to improve health and education and unlock the growth potential of Southeast Asia’s largest economy. Its success will depend on the government’s ability to manage costs, ensure effective implementation and minimize risks of waste and corruption.
"The president sets the vision and policy. We are simply executing it,” Hindayana said.
To boost meat and dairy consumption, Indonesia plans to ease regulations on cattle imports. The government said more than 150 companies have committed to importing a total of 2 million cattle over the next four years.
-- ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
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