JAKARTA, June 19, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Indonesia will suspend its free meal 
scheme during holiday periods, after mass protests in the capital condemned 
wasteful spending and demanded that the government address worsening economic 
conditions.

The multi-billion-dollar feeding programme is one of President Prabowo 
Subianto's signature policies, but has been widely criticised for its high 
costs, with hundreds demonstrating in Jakarta last week to call for it to be 
scrapped.

The National Nutrition Agency (BGN), the body tasked to distribute the meals, 
has ordered kitchens not to serve them in the upcoming holiday period between 
June 22 and July 13.

The agency said the freeze will also apply on future public and religious 
holidays as well as weekends.

BGN spokeswoman Agustina Arumsari said in a statement late Thursday the move 
was not just about "budget efficiency" but would "ensure that every resource 
owned by the state truly provides optimal benefits for the groups in need".

The state is expected to save more than three trillion rupiah ($168 million) 
in the upcoming holiday period, Agustina said, adding that this would present 
an opportunity to take stock and "ensure that the free nutritious meal 
programme becomes more accurately targeted".

More than 61 million people have benefited from the programme as of March, 
according to government figures.

But the scheme has been blighted by mass food poisonings and corruption 
claims since it started in January last year.

This month, Prabowo fired Dadan Hindayana, the head of the BGN since its 
inception in August 2024, along with two deputies. They stand accused of 
"crimes in management" of the agency.

Critics said the holiday suspension did not address the main problem they 
identify, poor governance.

"The suspension of the Free Nutritious Meals programme during school holidays 
is a step that has come far too late. The main issue is not merely about 
distribution during school holidays, but concerns the governance of a 
programme that has been problematic from the very beginning," Ubaid Matraji, 
a researcher at the Indonesian Education Monitoring Network, told AFP.

The free meal scheme had a goal of reaching at least 82.9 million children, 
and pregnant and breastfeeding women -- nearly one-third of the country's 
population.

But it was among the first budget items to be cut back as Jakarta moved to 
counter the economic impact of the Middle East war.

More than 20 percent of children in Indonesia are affected by stunting caused 
by severe malnutrition.