February 7, 2026 | 10:27 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Around 36 thousand people with disabilities will receive Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) in 2026. According to the Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf, around 300-400 thousand elderly people will also receive the free meals.
"This is just an expansion of the target and is carried out through the integration of the MBG program run by the National Nutrition Agency (BGN) with social protection services that have been managed by the Ministry of Social Affairs," said Saifullah, as quoted from Antara, Thursday, February 5, 2026.
According to Saifullah, the ministry had been running a similar meal provision program for years, but it will now be integrated into Prabowo's free nutritious meal program to ensure a wider range of beneficiaries.
So far, the Ministry of Social Affairs is still conducting data collection to determine the list of individuals who will receive this integrated MBG and the meal distribution mechanism. In doing so, the ministry is working with local governments.
Regarding the target recipients of free nutritious meals for the elderly, according to Saifullah, it is possible for those living in elderly care homes. "Although the final figures are still awaiting the results of simulations and data updates," he said.
Meanwhile, MBG for people with disabilities will be provided twice a day, in the morning and afternoon.
Saifullah hopes that the integration of the MBG program with social protection can strengthen the nutritional fulfillment of vulnerable groups, as well as improve the effectiveness of accurate and fair data-based assistance distribution, in line with the priority programs of President Prabowo Subianto.
The free nutritious meals for the elderly and people with disabilities amount to Rp15,000. Saifullah emphasized that with this price tag, the meal menu will be more diverse than the previous meal assistance programs and will be tailored to the needs of the elderly and people with disabilities.
As of February 2026, the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs stated that the MBG program has benefited 60 million people, while about 22,091 kitchen units have been established.
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