5 minute read
Feeding hungry mouths by addressing food insecurity
BY JESSIE TAYLOR
Food insecurity in South Africa has almost doubled since 2019, with single-parent households among those worse affected. The effects of poor nutrition can be long-lasting, and children who are undernourished are more susceptible to stunted growth, disease, and death.
A VULNERABLE POPULATION
An estimated 6.5 million South Africans (11% of the population) are food insecure. This means they do not have sufficient money to buy food and cannot make their own – often due to unemployment or low incomes – and are vulnerable to economic shocks. The province with the highest number of food insecure households is Gauteng, where more than a third of the population is vulnerable and has at the very least skipped a meal because there was insufficient money for food.
Research has found that those with lower education levels are more likely to experience hunger and food insecurity, and it is more prevalent among households headed up by single people. In South Africa, almost a quarter of households are run by a single individual.
Women are also more likely to be affected by food insecurity, according to the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES). The report found that women are more likely to be affected by moderate to severe food insecurity and severe food insecurity than their male counterparts. The report estimated that almost 20% of South African women experience moderate to severe food insecurity, compared to men at 15.2%.
Food security is particularly important for childhood development. A lack of nutrition can lead to stunted growth, and according to uNICEF makes children more vulnerable to disease and death.
In a recent address at the united Nations General Assembly, Department of International Relations and Cooperation Minister Naledi Pandor said the world’s greatest challenges are poverty, inequality, joblessness and feeling excluded.
She said that it will require global solidarity to meet pressing challenges such as food insecurity.
WORKING TOWARDS A FOOD SECURITY FUTURE
Dr Chana Pilane-Makaje, Deputy Minister for Public Service and Administration says: “Food security is essential to Africa’s human capital development and securing the resultant benefits of social-economic growth and development. Food security in Africa must be prioritised, we must fight hunger, and we must fight malnutrition. If our population in Africa is not well nourished, our population won’t be strong enough for it to participate in the development of Africa.”
There are ways to reduce food security, such as social services and increased employment opportunities.
These are some of the ways the South African government is tackling the issue: • Feeding at schools. To ensure children have adequate nutrition, the government runs the National
School Nutrition Programme which provides one nutritious meal to all learners in disadvantaged primary and secondary schools. While the objective is to provide nutritious meals to learners to improve their ability to learn, it also ensures children receive the basic nutrition required for healthy development.
• Social support. Through more than 18 million social grants, the government aims to redistribute wealth to those living below the poverty line and increase food security. One of the proposals to further this aim is the increase of the Department of Social Development’s suggestion to increase the Social Relief of Distress Grant, which will ensure beneficiaries are about to afford basic nutrition.
• Increased employment.As food security is linked to household income, creating more employment opportunities has the power to lift households out of poverty and enable to them to afford basic nutrition. The South African government is also tackling employment through programmes such as those run by the National Youth Development Agency and the Expanded Public Works programme and skill development opportunities.
• Urban agriculture. The FIES report suggests that households could produce their own food, to help food security, through urban agriculture. “Increased household or individual income, economic growth and offering additional resources to improve food insecurity have been very effective in reducing the prevalence of food insecurity in many countries,” the report said. These programmes could also be run at community facilities such as schools and parks.
Increasing food security not only ensures the basic human rights of citizens but also creates communities that are healthy and able to contribute to the economy.
This in turn builds an active and resilient society.
