Jakarta, March 17 -- The Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program has significant potential to improve living standards in rural regions across Indonesia, Minister of Villages and Development of Disadvantaged Regions Yandri Susanto said.

He endorsed the national priority program during an iftar event with journalists at his official residence in Jakarta on Monday night, March 16, according to a statement cited on Tuesday.

Expanding on his view, Susanto pointed to his ministry's efforts to involve thematic villages as suppliers of food ingredients and commodities for MBG kitchens, thereby stimulating economic growth among rural communities.

He described thematic villages as the outcome of a program designed to optimize village development by...