Andi Adam Faturahman, Jakarta – Indonesia's National Nutrition Agency (BGN) has reported an increasing shortage of nutritionists following the launch of the government's Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program, a flagship social initiative introduced by President Prabowo Subianto on January 6.
BGN Head Dadan Hindayana said that nutritionists, once struggling to find employment, are now in high demand.
"Committee IX has asked BGN to find a solution to the scarcity of nutritionists," Dadan said after a hearing with Commission IX of the House of Representatives (DPR) on Wednesday, November 12, 2025.
To address the gap, BGN is considering involving professionals from related fields.
"As an alternative, we may recruit graduates of public health, food technology, or food processing programs," said Dadan, who also serves as a professor at IPB University.
According to data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), Indonesia had 34,553 active nutritionists in 2024, about five percent fewer than in 2023, when the figure reached 36,400.
Dadan explained that the decline is partly due to a Health Ministry regulation requiring all health professionals who interact directly with the public to hold a professional registration certificate.
The requirement has triggered legal challenges. One was brought to the Constitutional Court in a judicial review of Article 212 paragraph (2) of Law No. 17 of 2023 on Health.
The case, filed by a nutrition graduate named Julita Langgu under Case No. 50/PUU-XXII/2024, argued that the professional registration certificate regulation has made it difficult for qualified graduates to secure jobs in community-based health sectors.
In her petition, Julita said she had repeatedly applied for positions at community health centers, clinics, and food processing industries, but was often rejected because she did not yet possess an STR.
"As far as I understand, after completing a nutrition degree, graduates should be able to take a competency test to obtain a professional registration certificate. However, I'm uncertain whether the new health law now makes the STR a prerequisite for taking the test itself," she told the Court during a hearing on August 22, 2024.