Indonesia's Health Minister proposes nutritious meals for tuberculosis patients

Indonesian Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin has proposed integrating tuberculosis (TB) patients into the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) program, aiming to bolster their recovery process. The minister highlighted that studies show TB patients often have weakened physical conditions, classifying them as vulnerable, especially when malnourished.

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Therefore, if tuberculosis patients can receive sufficient or slightly more nutritional intake, it will strengthen and expedite their recovery.

"Therefore, if tuberculosis patients can receive sufficient or slightly more nutritional intake, it will strengthen and expedite their recovery," Sadikin stated at the Parliament Complex in Jakarta. He emphasized that addressing the nutritional needs of TB patients could significantly improve health outcomes, noting that approximately 126,000 people die annually from tuberculosis in Indonesia.

Beyond TB patients, the ministry also identifies pregnant women, nursing mothers, and toddlers as key groups requiring enhanced nutritional support through the MBG program. Sadikin believes meeting the nutritional needs of these four groups could lead to a substantial decrease in the nation's health problems.

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If the nutritional needs of these four targets are met, our health problems will decrease drastically.

While the proposal is under discussion with the implementing agency, the National Nutrition Body (BGN) is simultaneously developing a more refined scheme for MBG distribution. BGN spokesperson Agustina Arumsari explained that beneficiary selection will consider social and economic conditions, including desil groups (socio-economic strata), alongside indicators of malnutrition vulnerability and access to nutritional resources. The agency is still processing data to finalize these criteria for the 2027 program budget.

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Desil is just one indicator. Later, there will be nutritional vulnerability indicators, socio-economic conditions, one of the parameters of which is desil, as well as access to meeting nutritional needs. The criteria are still being processed and refined by us.