Jakarta, July 2 -- The Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program is the first of its kind to target the nutritional needs of toddlers, pregnant women, and breastfeeding mothers, according to Population and Family Development Minister Wihaji.

"Many countries have similar programs that serve schoolchildren. However, our MBG remains the only initiative in the world that covers pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers as well," he said at his office in Jakarta on Wednesday.

"This program was pioneered by Mr. President (Prabowo Subianto)," he added.

Wihaji explained that unlike similar programs elsewhere, the MBG also addresses the nutritional needs of children in their first 1,000 days of life-a critical period for growth and development-to prev...