SEAMEO RECFON held an awarding ceremony on November 24-25, 2023, to honor 23 schools that have achieved the institutionalization phase of the Centre’s Nutrition Goes to School (NGTS) Program.

The Center appreciated the efforts of 8 elementary schools, 7 junior high schools, and 8 senior high schools from Bogor City, Bogor District, Cimahi City, Cirebon City, Klaten District, Malang District, and Sambas District. Additionally, recognition was extended to academic partners from Bandung Health Polytechnic, Tasikmalaya Health Polytechnic, Yogyakarta Health Polytechnic, Malang Health Polytechnic, Pontianak Health Polytechnic, and Brawijaya University.

Acting Director Dr. Zainun Misbah, along with the Board of Directors, experts, managers, and staff, warmly welcomed participants on November 24, 2023, initiating discussions and a casual dinner.

On November 25, 2023, Dr. Zainun Misbah and Dr. Nia Nurhasanah from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology expressed their appreciation in opening remarks, acknowledging the school principals, teachers, and academic partners for their achievements in implementing the NGTS Program. They expressed hopes for the sustainability of these efforts, urging them to be scalable to other schools.

The highlight of the event was the award ceremony, honoring the 23 schools and 6 academic partners that reached the institutionalization phase of the NGTS Program. A formal commitment to influence the NGTS Program to other schools (Pengimbasan) was signed by school representatives, academic partners, and SEAMEO RECFON to fortify collaboration and commitment in advancing the NGTS Program. The ceremony concluded with an emotional rendition of the Teacher’s Hymn Songs by all participants, coinciding with Indonesia’s National Teacher’s Day (25 November). All participants were also invited to the National Commemoration of Teacher’s Day with the President of the Republic of Indonesia and the Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology in the afternoon in Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, attended by around 7.500 teachers from all over Indonesia.