Why is Indonesia tapping Japan, India, China expertise for free school meals?

Indonesia is looking to countries such as India, Japan and China as it aims to implement a nationwide free school meals scheme proposed by President-elect Prabowo Subianto amid concerns about its potential impact on Indonesia’s finances.

According to a South China Morning Post report, his team is exploring lessons from countries like Japan, China, and India, which have successfully implemented similar programs while managing costs effectively.

However, analysts caution that Indonesia faces significant economic and logistical challenges that could complicate the adoption of these models.

A cornerstone of his election campaign promises, 72-year-old Prabowo, set to assume office in October, views the program, which includes free lunches and milk for schoolchildren, as essential to combating child malnutrition.

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According to Indonesian health ministry data, 21.6 per cent of children under the age of five suffer from stunting, a consequence of malnutrition leading to growth and developmental problems.

Prabowo aims for the program to reverse this trend, covering 83 million underprivileged children. It is projected to cost $4.35 billion in 2025 and up to $27 billion by full implementation in 2029, potentially boosting economic growth by 2.6 percentage points.

To fund the initiative, Prabowo’s administration is considering measures such as stricter tax enforcement and reducing spending, including on President Joko Widodo’s $32 billion capital relocation project.

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Critics, including the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, argue the program could escalate Indonesia’s budget deficit, though Prabowo’s team pledges to adhere to legal debt limits, with Jakarta targeting a deficit of 2.3 per cent of GDP this year.

Models implemented by India, Japan, China

Indonesia is expected to examine cost management by regional countries that have implemented such programs.

During his visit to Beijing in March, Prabowo reportedly visited a school in the capital’s Dongcheng district to learn about its free lunch program for students.

In April, vice-president-elect Gibran Rakabuming Raka told state news agency Antara that an Indonesian team was sent to India to understand the country’s free lunch program.

Gibran said the Indian ambassador to Indonesia, Sandeep Chakravorty, informed him that India’s program costs 11 US cents per child per day because of logistical efficiencies. In comparison, the Prabowo team estimates a cost of 94 US cents per child per day for the Indonesian program.

Josua Pardede, chief economist at Permata Bank in Indonesia, told the South China Morning Post that the Chinese and Indian programs are tailored according to local requirements and factors.

“China’s free meal policy began in 2011 and is not universal, it is very well-targeted, aimed only at the poor in remote rural areas,” South China Morning Post quoted Pardede as saying.

Its program started in several remote villages before it was expanded over the years, he added.

Pardede said in India, funding for the program to provide daily lunches to over 100 million students was shared between the central and local governments.

First launched in 1995, India’s program cost about $2.6 billion in 2023, with the central government and state governments paying 60 per cent and 40 per cent, respectively.

India and China run their programs successfully as they grow much of the food for domestic consumption. However, Indonesia’s food production typically fluctuates from year to year, and any shortfall would have to be met through imports.

In Japan, government data shows nearly 99 per cent of primary schools provided lunch to students in 2023. The meals are not always free of charge, with some students paying an average of $300 annually, but many municipalities fully subsidise these costs.

In September, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will host Indonesian officials in Nagasaki prefecture to train and help them understand Japan’s century-long experience of providing school meals.

“Nagasaki shares the island characteristic with Indonesia, making it an ideal setting,” JICA said in a statement to This Week in Asia.

“Through this initiative, JICA seeks to support Indonesia in addressing its nutritional challenges, drawing on Japan’s extensive experience while respecting Indonesia’s unique needs and circumstances.”

Indonesia is ranked 84th out of 113 countries in terms of food availability, way behind India in 42nd place and China in 2nd place, according to the 2022 Global Food Security Index.

Concerns about Indonesia’s capacity to fund the program were valid due to Indonesia’s weak financial position and heavy economic dependence on commodities, whose prices were typically volatile, Pardede said.

“This situation alarms investors because … the policies to boost state revenue and reduce the current account deficit remain inadequate," he added.

With inputs from agencies