Half SA citizens lack food

Food security has become a national crisis with some evidence suggesting roughly 50% of the country’s population is food insecure or at risk of food insecurity.

This was reported by the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) during a joint portfolio committee meeting in parliament.

According to the agency, the situation could be largely attributed to rising poverty and unemployment levels, exacerbated by inequality.

Evidence suggested food insecurity was concentrated in rural and informal settlements around cities, according to Review Online.

High incidences of food insecurity, hunger and malnutrition in recent times, coupled with loss of income as reported by Statistics SA, might lead to higher levels of food insecurity.

Sassa said the percentage of respondents who reported receiving no income had increased from 5.2% before the lockdown to 15.4% by the sixth week of the national lockdown. Further increases were expected.

The food problem was more serious in the North West (36.6%), Northern Cape (32.3%), Mpumalanga (28.4%) and the Eastern Cape (25.4%), according to Sassa.

Informal settlements in KwaZulu-Natal, the Western Cape, Eastern Cape and Gauteng were also badly affected. Ethekwini, Gugulethu, Alexandra, Diepsloot, Orange Farm, Mamelodi, Winterveldt, Buffalo City and Nelson Mandela Bay are among these informal settlements.

From 1 April to 25 May, a total of 523 490 food parcels were distributed by Sassa, reaching 2 093 960 people.

Adding those receiving food through the Solidarity Fund through nonprofit organisations, 3 153 132 people were reached in total.

The department of social development partnered with the Solidarity Fund and co-funded the delivery of 58 750 food parcels to the value of R43 500, delivered through implementing agents.

Sassa and the department provide food relief and social relief of distress through the legislated processes administered by officials across the country.

They used nonprofit organisations as implementing agents and also partnered with community-based organisations to distribute food parcels.

– Caxton News Service