Indonesia’s Free-Lunch Plan Will Cost Prabowo
Meals for every student is a laudable initiative, but paying for it is a challenge.
Addressing malnutrition would be a huge plus for the economy, but Indonesia must get it right.
Photographer: TIMUR MATAHARI/AFP/Getty Images
Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto doesn’t do small. He wants economic growth to be faster than any other country and to erect a sea wall several hundred miles along the Java coastline. More ambitious still, he wants every child to get a free daily meal. In a nation of more than 280 million people, someone has to pick up a hefty check.
The nutrition scheme took an important step forward last week — when funding was reduced. The more bite-size the early stages, the better the chances that it will be effective and make a long-term contribution to development.