Central Java, 14–17 July 2025

SEAMEO RECFON conducted a series of advocacy and monitoring activities from 14 to 17 July 2025 at four schools in Central Java—SMAN 1 Slawi, SMK Tunas Harapan Pati, SMPN 1 Sidoharjo, and SMAN 1 Sokaraja—as part of the preparation for the institutionalization phase of the second cohort of the Nutrition Goes To School (NGTS) Program. This initiative aims to strengthen the program’s sustainability by encouraging greater involvement from both schools and local education authorities. 

SEAMEO RECFON team carried out two main activities during the visit: advocacy meetings with education offices and monitoring visits to the supported schools. The involved education offices included the Central Java Provincial Education Office – Branch Offices for Region XII (Pemalang) and Region III (Pati), as well as the Sragen District Education Office. These advocacy efforts are essential to clarify the role of education authorities in supporting the institutionalization process, including aspects of reporting, program supervision, and recognition of school achievements.

Meanwhile, school visits focused on monitoring program implementation based on each school’s Action Plan and NGTS monitoring indicators. In-depth discussions were held to acknowledge achievements, identify challenges, and determine steps needed to advance towards institutionalization.

Commitment and Challenges from Schools

At SMAN 1 Slawi, the implementation of NGTS is integrated with the ongoing programs in this school, such as the Healthy School Movement and Free Nutritious Meals Programs. The school promotes healthy breakfasts, nutrition education by utilizing gardens that is linked to intra-curricular activities, and a student-led healthy canteen education initiative. However, the school continues to face challenges in controlling students’ snacking habits outside school hours.

SMK Tunas Harapan Pati has adopted and implemented the School Culture Program with a healthy lifestyle as one of its five pillars. The school also consistently promotes balanced nutrition through regular education and a daily lunchbox monitoring system integrated into the school’s attendance application. However, the school is still struggling to shift students’ food preferences towards more nutritious options, especially vegetables and fruits.

SMPN 1 Sidoharjo has enthusiastically implemented all NGTS components. Nutrition education starts during the school orientation period for new students and is reinforced through daily routines in intra-, co-, and extra-curricular activities, such as market day, in collaboration with the local Puskesmas. The school garden is used as a learning medium, although its harvest is still insufficient for widespread consumption.

SMAN 1 Sokaraja has implemented three of the four NGTS components which are nutrition education, school garden, and nutrition-based entrepreneurship. This school has actively implemented the Nutrition Goes to School (NGTS) program by integrating nutrition education into student orientation (MPLS), classroom lessons, and routine activities. The school also promotes hands-on learning through a nutrition garden managed by students as part of sustainable lifestyle and biology classes, where harvested vegetables are sold in school entrepreneurship activities and featured with educational posters on their health benefits.

Support from Local Authorities and Hopes for Sustainability

 

The four-day series of activities received a warm response from local education offices, who expressed their support for sustaining NGTS and their hope to see the program adopted by more schools in their respective areas.

SEAMEO RECFON emphasized that institutionalization marks a critical stage in which schools are expected to independently manage the program with systematic support from local stakeholders.

Through these advocacy and monitoring efforts, it is hoped that existing best practices in schools can be further strengthened and replicated, contributing to the broader vision of building healthy schools and a more nutrition-literate generation in Indonesia.