To Measure MBG Impact, Ministry of Health to Survey Nutritional Status of School Children

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - The Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) is planning to conduct a survey on the nutritional status of school-aged children to assess the impact of the Healthy Eating Program (MBG).

Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin stated that the survey aims to track the nutritional progress of school children after participating in the MBG program.

"Regarding MBG, my latest meeting with Mr. Sudar and also with Mr. Mendikdasmen finds us planning to conduct a nutrition survey among school children," Budi said during a press conference discussing the achievements of President Prabowo Subianto and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka at the Ministry of Health's office in Jakarta on Thursday (22/10/2026).

He confirmed that approval has been granted to conduct the survey to assess nutritional adequacy following the implementation of MBG.

"It has been agreed that we will carry out a nutrition survey for school-aged children, which will help determine their nutritional adequacy progress," he added.

Budi explained that Kemenkes already holds nutritional survey data for toddlers, particularly to monitor the incidence of stunting. However, this data is considered insufficient to measure the impact of MBG because toddlers have not widely benefited from this program.

In contrast, the MBG recipients are primarily school-aged children, necessitating the collection of specific data to understand the nutritional status of this group.

Budi mentioned that measurements will include monitoring children's height and weight, alongside other indicators related to meeting nutritional requirements.

"We will measure them similarly to infants, assessing their height and weight, as there are indicators of their nutritional sufficiency," he said.