JakartaPost-Feb 2, 2026
The state budget’s education allocation for President Prabowo Subianto’s flagship free nutritious meal (MBG) program has met legal challenges at the Constitutional Court, with petitioners arguing the rollout diverts funding from constitutionally mandated education spending. Plaintiffs of an education foundation, three law students from Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University (UIN) Jakarta and a contract teacher filed a judicial review petition on Jan. 26 to contest Article 22 (3) of the 2026 State Budget Law. The article stipulates that operational funding for education includes the free meal program at institutions related to the sector, which the plaintiffs argued had violated the 1945 Constitution’s mandate that at least 20 percent of the state budget must be allocated for education. Out of the Rp 3.8 quadrillion (US$226 billion) projected spending in this year’s state budget, education accounts for a total of 20 percent of Rp 769 trillion. Around Rp 223 trillion of it is allocated to fund the free meal program. The program receives a total of Rp 335 trillion from the 2026 budget, with the remaining comes from health and economic spending. The figure was increased from Rp 71 trillion allocated in 2025. The National Nutrition Agency manages the free meal rollout and is given a budget ceiling of Rp 268 trillion, with the rest of the fund set aside as reserves. “This budget shift reduces fiscal space for more urgent education needs, such as improving teacher quality, school infrastructure, education assistance and equitable access to education,” plaintiff’s lawyer Abdul Hakim said in a statement on Saturday. He added that the reduction left only Rp 536 trillion for education, or 14 percent of total state spending, leading to austerity measures affecting teachers’ welfare. The free meal program had faced mounting criticism since last year over food safety issues. Read more at:
