Indonesia's Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa revealed that the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program generates tax revenue of 3-5% from its Rp335 trillion budget. The tax is deducted directly from disbursed funds. He emphasized job creation and economic stability as the program's key contributions.
Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa made the remarks in Jakarta on Monday. "For MBG, the tax revenue is around 3-5 percent from the total realized budget, 3-5 percent from the total realized budget directly goes to tax," he said.
He described the tax deduction as significant but stressed that MBG's primary economic impact comes from job creation. "When economic activity picks up, tax revenue will exceed that 3 percent figure. And in those areas, MBG creates jobs, which brings its own stability. That's the most valuable and precious impact for us," Purbaya stated.
The program bolsters public economic stability amid geopolitical pressures. Earlier, Deputy Finance Minister Suahasil Nazara reported Rp44 trillion in budget realization by March 9, 2026, or 13.1% of the Rp335 trillion total. It reaches 61.62 million recipients via 25,082 Nutrition Fulfillment Service Units (SPPG), including 49.9 million students and 10.5 million non-students.
Purbaya acknowledged the need for improvements to make implementation more efficient.
