Jakarta (ANTARA) - Head of the National Nutrition Agency, Dadan Hindayana, stated that the agency was formed to implement the priority program of free nutritious meals of President-elect, Prabowo Subianto.
"The agency aims to implement the President-elect's priority program. Related to the budget cycle and in order to start working in January 2025, the budget must be included in the financial note," Hindayana stated after being officiated by President Joko Widodo on Monday.
According to the agency head, the Presidential Regulation on the National Nutrition Agency had to be regulated during President Widodo's tenure based on the reasons mentioned above.
Hindayana said his agency is part of the continuity of the government.
"The president has signed the regulation, and I was appointed to lead the agency. I am responsible for preparing (the program) and running the Free Nutritious Meal Program in January 2025," he explained.
After his inauguration, Hindayana will immediately prepare aspects related to the Free Nutritious Meals Program for students, Islamic boarding school students, pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers, and toddlers.
He stated that the budget for the program had been set at Rp71 trillion (US$4.3 billion) and would be managed by his agency.
"We hope we can receive the DIPA (Budget Implementation Checklist) in the first week of December 2024 in order to run the program on January 2, 2025," he remarked.
He noted that the Free Nutritious Meal Program will be implemented immediately across Indonesia.
Apart from Hindayana, the president also officiated several state officials, namely Bahlil Lahadalia as Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Supratman Andi Agtas as Minister of Law and Human Rights, and Rosan Roeslani as Minister of Investment/Head of the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM).
Hasan Nasbi was appointed as Head of the Presidential Communication Office and Taruna Ikrar as Head of the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM).
