Indonesia's Prabowo removes head of free meals agency over governance concerns

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has sacked ​the head of the National ​Nutrition Agency which runs his ‌flagship $20 billion ​free school-meals programme, an official said, citing governance and food quality concerns.

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has sacked ​the head of the National ​Nutrition Agency which runs his ‌flagship $20 billion ​free school-meals programme, an official said, citing governance and food quality concerns. Here are key details about ‌the announcement:

* The decision to remove Dadan Hindayana followed an evaluation of the agency's performance, state secretariat minister Prasetyo Hadi told reporters late on Tuesday. * Dadan, an ‌entomologist, will be replaced by his deputy, Nanik Sudaryati Deyang, who is ‌a former journalist and was part of Prabowo's campaigning team in the 2024 election.

* Prasetyo said reasons for the sacking included issues around operating procedures and good governance since the programme ⁠was launched ​in January 2025. * "There ⁠are issues relating to discipline in implementing governance, including discipline in maintaining food quality standards, that ⁠should have been established by the National Nutrition Agency," he said.

* The school meals ​programme has been linked to food poisoning affecting at least 33,000 children ⁠as of April, according to non-governmental organisation Network for Education Watch (JPPI). * Investors have raised concerns about the ⁠impact ​on the budget of Prabowo's spending on major welfare projects, including the meals programme.

* The government plans to spend 268 trillion rupiah ($15 billion) for the ⁠programme this year, less than its initial allocation of 335 trillion rupiah. * The ⁠programme has reached ⁠62 million recipients as of April 30, government data showed. The government expects the programme to reach 82.9 million recipients ‌this year.

($1 = ‌17,830 rupiah)