“The immediate impact of the public health crisis has revealed the deep fragility of the South African food system and exposed the injustices that underpin it. This has clearly been a disruption, presenting a period of deep uncertainty and change, creating an opportunity for a...
Civil society groups have played an important role in responding to the COVID-19 social crisis in South Africa. Examples include the “community action networks” in Cape Town and Gauteng, as well as similar initiatives in more rural areas, such as the Eastern Cape. They also include extraordinary crisis response efforts by...
The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated both the unsustainability and the fragility of our current food system, across multiple scales. COVID-19 has proven to be the litmus test for the current industrialized food system, one that has, in certain circles, been championed as being the only...
The immediate impact of the public health crisis has revealed the deep fragility of the South African food system and exposed the injustices that underpin it. This has clearly been a disruption, presenting a period of deep uncertainty and change, creating an opportunity for a...
On 11 June 2020, members of the Food Lab advisory board discussed how the impacts of the Covid-19 public health crisis has revealed the deep fragility of the South African food system. There has clearly been a disruption, presenting a period of deep uncertainty and change,...
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“Understanding the complex and dynamic interrelationships between water, energy and food will enable cities to manage resources sustainably.” – Sandra Boatemaa, Centre for Complex Systems in Transition (Stellenbosch University). Systems-thinking means shifting narratives to include experiences that are otherwise overlooked. A circular approach accounts for the...
By Luke Metelerkamp, Taryn Pereira, Heila Lotz-Sisitka, Monde Duma, Monde Ntshudu, Lwande Maqwelane and Lawrence Sisitka As Covid-19 infections escalate in the Eastern Cape, confusion, misinformation and anxiety are rife. The need for clear, reliable and locally relevant information is urgent, especially in isolated rural communities....
By Andries du Toit and Diana Mitlin More than sixty days after its commencement, South Africa is cautiously easing its way out of one of the most sweeping lockdowns of the global Covid 19 pandemic. In many ways, this new phase—‘Level 3’ of the South African...
There are so many ways that communities around the world are being affected by COVID-19. Most of what we hear is about the problems. There are, after all, so many. But as the problems emerge, so do the innovation and commitment to find solutions. In...
Robyn Wolfson Vorster SA’s plans to combat child hunger were flawed prior to the Covid-19 crisis. And now, the absence of a strategic plan and funds for food relief could push already vulnerable children to the brink of starvation. Concern about child malnutrition made national news in...
Ben Cousins The COVID-19 crisis has clearly demonstrated the vulnerability of the livelihoods of many South Africans, and highlighted food insecurity as one key aspect. Many now argue that reducing the vulnerability of the livelihoods of the poor, and associated food insecurity, must become a key focus of...
By Stephen Grootes While so many South Africans are naturally worried about avoiding Covid-19, it is clear that to even more people the greatest fear is hunger. The evidence is that so far, food production has remained the same, but farmers have too much food on...
Recently, our country's leaders and medical representatives have publicly debated the effect of the lockdown on the malnutrition rates of our most vulnerable populations. Before Covid-19, a significant number of South Africans did not have access to sufficient food and were going hungry on a...
According to Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice & Dignity (PMBEJD), the problem facing South Africans has been compounded through multiple means. Whilst the price of foods in the supermarket trollies of families living on low incomes continues to increase, with the Household Food Basket having increased by...
In commemoration of International World Hunger Day on 28 May 2020, Community Chest, in partnership with The Southern Africa Food Lab, has launched a publication entitled “Challenging False Narratives in a Global Crisis: Reflections on Human Rights, Inequality and Securing Food Systems”. The compilation of papers, reflecting...
Public statement by the Southern Africa Food Lab 27 May 2020 The Southern Africa Food Lab notes with concern indications in the media and from first hand reports that government is acting to limit civil society initiatives for food security and food relief. The lockdown, which was imposed on...
By Mark Heywood As I went for one of my early-morning runs last week, it was a rubbish collection day. As I panted up and down hills on the comfortable, sequestered roads around Observatory, I noticed many more people than usual foraging in the bins. These...
By Nic JJ Olivier and Sheryl L Hendriks For millions of poor households across Africa affected by lockdowns, the threat of contracting Covid-19 may be more distant than the very real fear of hunger. Many are indefinitely trapped in cramped homes with multiple household members, wondering...
Stephen Greenberg The Covid-19 crisis has exposed the stark inequalities that persist in our society. Vast disparities in access to healthcare, food, shelter, personal safety, water, transport and communications have been laid bare. Aside from imposing a lockdown, the government has been in disarray in responding to...