Wapres Tinjau Makan Bergizi Gratis di SMP 1 Ndona, Kabupaten Ende, Nusa Tenggara Timur

Vice President Gibran Rakabuming emphasized that the Free Nutritious Meal Program (MBG) needs to be prioritized in underdeveloped, frontier, and outermost (3T) areas so that its benefits can reach those most in need. The Vice President made this statement during a dialogue with parents and the community at Wolomoni Elementary School, Niowula Village, Detusoko District, Ende Regency, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), on Thursday (June 19, 2026), after reviewing the school's readiness to implement the MBG program. "So, I think the MBG will be more targeted if it is focused on 3T areas," said the Vice President. According to the Vice President, areas like Niowula Village, which are quite far from urban centers, are the areas most in need of the MBG program. Therefore, the government will expedite various supporting processes so that the program can be implemented immediately. "Areas like these are the ones that need the MBG the most. That's why, as mentioned earlier, if the kitchen is ready, we must automatically expedite the permitting process. I'm sure the younger siblings behind me desperately need the MBG, and I'm sure it will ease the burden on the women here," said the Vice President. During the dialogue, the Vice President learned that the MBG kitchen in Niowula Village has been completed, but is still awaiting inspection and feasibility testing from the central government before it can operate. The Vice President also acknowledged that the implementation of the MBG still faces several challenges and requires comprehensive improvements, particularly in terms of governance and oversight. "I am aware that the MBG still has many shortcomings. Going forward, more improvements are needed. Governance must be improved to be more efficient, inappropriate procurement must be eliminated, and most importantly, corrupt practices must be eliminated," he emphasized. Separately, speaking to the media, the Vice President conveyed that the school holiday period will be used to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the MBG implementation. "Yesterday, the new Head of the National Development Planning Agency (BGN) and the Deputy Head of BGN announced that we are currently on school holidays. I think this is the right time to conduct a comprehensive evaluation, especially regarding governance at BGN," said the Vice President. He emphasized that the government will continue to improve program governance to ensure it is more targeted and free from corruption. "Going forward, we will continue to improve it to ensure it is more targeted and to prevent corrupt practices from recurring," he added. In addition to improving governance, the Vice President emphasized the importance of involving various community elements in the implementation of the MBG to ensure the program runs more effectively and sustainably. "Not just school canteens, perhaps we could involve Islamic boarding schools, churches, culinary vocational schools, PKK mothers, parents—everyone can be involved. So, the more people are involved, especially parents, I'm sure the implementation will be better in the future," he said. The Vice President added that the government's focus on the 3T (Underdeveloped and Remote Areas) is in line with President Prabowo Subianto's directive to ensure that development is no longer oriented toward specific regions, but rather reaches all regions equally. "What we highlighted earlier was the gap. So now, development is no longer Java-centric, but Indonesia-centric," said the Vice President. On the same occasion, the Vice President also invited student representatives from various universities to observe firsthand the conditions of the communities in the 3T (Underdeveloped and Remote Areas) and monitor the implementation of priority government programs, including the MBG (Community Development Program) and the Red and White Village Cooperative (KDMP). Rapid Bena Matin, a student representative from Jenderal Soedirman University (Unsoed), stated that the visit provided a concrete illustration of the access gap between urban and 3T areas. "Here, we can see firsthand the reality on the ground, especially in these remote 3T areas. We may live in urban areas with easy access, but here we are given the opportunity to see firsthand the conditions of the communities, especially in relation to the President's priority programs such as the MBG and KDMP," said Rapid. He believes the MBG and KDMP programs need to be prioritized in the 3T (United, Disadvantaged, and Transmigration) regions to reduce development disparities. "The President's priority programs, such as the Free Nutritious Meal Program to prevent stunting, and the KDMP to stimulate the community's economy, must be prioritized and prioritized in the 3T (United, and Transmigration) regions. This is to prevent a gap between life in cities and life in the 3T (United, and Transmigration) regions," said Rapid. He believes students are ready to contribute to overseeing and ev...