Indonesia’s Free School Meals Program Under Scrutiny After Thousands of Children Fall Ill

In a troubling development for Indonesia’s ambitious social welfare agenda, the government now faces intense calls to suspend President Prabowo Subianto’s multi-billion-dollar Free Nutritious Meal program after thousands of schoolchildren fell ill from what appears to be widespread food poisoning. This crisis exposes serious governance failures that reverberate beyond Indonesia’s borders—offering a cautionary tale for all nations prioritizing massive social spending without rigorous oversight. How Did a Program Promising Nutrition Become a Public Health Hazard? The Free Nutritious Meal program, launched earlier this year with the noble aim of combating malnutrition among nearly 90 million children and pregnant women, promised...