Bill Gates meets Indonesian leader to discuss health and sustainable
development initiatives
[May 07, 2025]
By NINIEK KARMINI and ACHMAD IBRAHIM
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Bill Gates arrived in Indonesia on Wednesday
to discuss health and sustainable development initiatives with the
leader of the world’s fourth most populous country.
Gates met President Prabowo Subianto at the colonial-style Merdeka
palace in Jakarta. They planned to discuss global health, nutrition,
financial inclusion and public digital infrastructure, Indonesia’s
presidential office said in a statement ahead of the meeting.
Indonesia, a vast archipelago of 17,000 islands sprawled across three
time zones with a population of more than 280 million, launched an
ambitious project this year to fight malnutrition that aims to feed
nearly 90 million children and pregnant women. The program is expected
to cost 450 trillion rupiah ($28 billion) through 2029 and critics
question whether it is affordable.
On Monday, Subianto said his meeting with Gates would focus on Gates’
support for Indonesia’s Free Nutritious Meals, known in Indonesia as the
MBG program, a flagship initiative of his administration aimed at
improving child nutrition and reducing poverty.
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Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, right, greets Microsoft
co-founder and former CEO Bill Gates during their meeting at Merdeka
Palace in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, May 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad
Ibrahim)
 During his first in-person visit to
the Indonesian capital, Gates is also scheduled to visit a primary
school in eastern Jakarta where more than 500 students were taking
part of the program.
The United Nations Children’s Fund estimates that one in 12
Indonesian children younger than 5 suffers from low weight, while
one in five is shorter than normal. Both conditions are caused by
malnourishment.
Subianto's program has drawn criticism from investors and analysts
over the scale of its logistics, the burden on state finances and
the economy, and its relation to the interests of industrial lobby
groups.
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