Transforming food subsidies in Indonesia

• Jul 29, 2025
• 1 min

The Government of Indonesia sought to reform its food subsidy system to make it more efficient and responsive to the needs of low-income households. The new program, Bantuan Pangan Non-Tunai (BPNT), was introduced to replace the older Beras Sejahtera (Rastra) system. BPNT intended to deliver food subsidies through a non-cash, digital platform that would improve transparency, reduce leakages, and offer more choice to beneficiaries.

MSC helped the government design, pilot, implement, and evaluate the BPNT program. We worked across 44 cities to test the program with 1.3 million beneficiaries. Our team assessed how well the program components worked. These included digital payment systems, the food supply chain, communication strategies, grievance redress mechanisms, and the verification process for selecting beneficiaries. MSC provided detailed feedback and recommendations that helped the government strengthen the program design. Based on MSC’s evaluation and recommendations, the government improved the communication approach and made the subsidy experience smoother for beneficiaries. These changes helped build trust and improve access. The government scaled up the program from 44 to more than 200 cities, reaching over 15 million people. MSC also conducted a national-level study to guide ongoing improvements and ensure the program remains responsive to the needs of its users.

The project was commissioned by the Gates Foundation.