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Free lunch budgeting ‘clearer’ than IKN project, Prabowo adviser says
Prabowo's economic adviser has touted the president-elect's flagship free school lunch project for its budget planning, thereby implicitly criticizing President Jokowi's legacy development project to relocate the nation's capital to East Kalimantan.
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Students line up on March 5, 2024 to take part in a free school lunch pilot program at SMPN 1 Darul Imarah state junior high school in Aceh Besar, Aceh. The program budgeted a production cost of Rp 15,000 (92 US cents) per portion. (Antara/Ampelsa)
T
he economic adviser of Prabowo Subianto’s expert team has said he prefers the president-elect’s free school lunch program over the Nusantara Capital City (IKN) project of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, as the former had “clearer” budget planning.
“As an economist, I cannot lie that I prefer the [free] nutritious meal program, because I know it can be implemented immediately. We have calculated the costs in detail, as well as the eligible [recipients],” Soedradjad Djiwandono, who is also Prabowo’s brother-in-law, said on Tuesday, as quoted by Kontan.
On June 24, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said an estimated Rp 71 trillion had been allocated for the free school lunch program in the 2025 draft state budget and that the fiscal deficit was projected to fall between 2.29 and 2.82 percent of GDP, below the 3 percent legal cap.
The program is estimated to cost between Rp 400 trillion and Rp 500 trillion through to the end of Prabowo’s five-year term in 2029.
Soedradjad added that he was not opposed to relocating the nation’s capital from Jakarta.
But he also noted that the IKN project lacked the careful cost calculations it required, especially as regards state budget support, which was reflected in problems related to the clean water supply at the site of the new capital being developed in East Kalimantan.
“Now, do we want to keep borrowing money? Do we want to build a new capital with debt?” Soedradjad said.
