Government Urged to Pay Attention to Children's Mental Health

SUARA NEGERI | JAKARTA — Child development is expected to encompass not only physical aspects, as promoted by the government through the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program, but also mental health, which has recently come under public scrutiny due to the recurrence of child suicides.

Natasya Restu Dewi Pratiwi, a social researcher at the Indonesian Institute, Center for Public Policy Research (TII), believes there will be a repeat of the February 2026 child suicide case, which involved a 12-year-old child in Demak, Central Java.

Prior to the incident in Central Java, Natasya had already observed the tragedy of a 10-year-old child in Ngada, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), who took his own life, allegedly due to extreme poverty, unable to afford books and pens worth less than Rp10,000.

"If economic factors and failure to access social assistance are the triggers, then the social protection system and population registration must be improved," said Natasya on Sunday, February 22, 2026.

According to her, the government must strengthen the integration of mental health services in schools, villages through integrated health posts (Posyandu), and community health centers (Puskesmas). This can be done through the Free Health Check (CKG) program, which has the potential to serve as an early screening point for children with suicidal intentions.

"This way, they can be immediately referred to professional services. Training should be provided for students, teachers, parents, religious leaders, and community leaders on recognizing signs of stress; how to care for themselves when experiencing psychological trauma; how to access mental health services; and how to communicate with children," Natasya added.

Therefore, she urged the government to pay attention to child suicide prevention measures, which must be systematically improved with adequate budget allocation, based on data, and targeting structural factors that have been neglected.

"The government must also reorganize policy and budget priorities. Amidst the ballooning budget for the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program, which has reached IDR 335 trillion, even taking up IDR 223 trillion of education funding, the state must ensure that early detection of children's mental health and capacity building for teachers and parents are not marginalized," said Natasya.

"Improving children's nutrition is important, but children's mental health is equally important. A large investment in a single program should not make children's psychosocial protection a secondary issue," she added. (*)