Jakarta (ANTARA) – Indonesia's Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya on Friday dismissed claims that the government's Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program has led to cuts in the education budget.He said allegations that the MBG program has reduced education funding, leaving schools and teachers neglected, are unfounded.”Some claim that the MBG program reduces education programs and budgets, resulting in neglected schools and teachers. I want to clarify that this claim is false,” he said.Teddy noted that the 2026 education budget — amounting to 20 percent of the State Budget, or Rp769 trillion (nearly US$49 billion) — was jointly approved by the government and the House of Representatives (DPR) last year, including detailed allocations.He emphasized that there has been no unilateral diversion of education funds to finance the MBG program.All major education initiatives from the previous period remain in place, he added. Programs such as the Smart Indonesia Card (KIP) and the Smart Indonesia Program (PIP) continue, alongside new initiatives including the free boarding school program Sekolah Rakyat, which targets school dropouts.Addressing concerns about deteriorating school facilities, Teddy explained that senior high schools fall under provincial governments, while elementary and junior high schools are managed by district and city administrations.He said the government renovated 16,000 schools in 2025 with a budget of approximately Rp17 trillion. It is also expanding digital learning infrastructure, having distributed 280,000 smartboard units, with plans to increase the number this year.Teddy stressed that the MBG program aims to improve human resource quality from an early age, thereby strengthening the broader education ecosystem.”This is the initial foundation for improving education,” he said.President Prabowo Subianto earlier stated that the MBG program is funded by reallocating resources saved through strict budget efficiency measures, rather than cutting existing priority budgets.These reallocated funds have enabled the government to provide free meals to more than 60 million beneficiaries, including students, pregnant and breastfeeding mothers, and the elderly, he added.