The effects of hunger among students need sensitivity and cannot be ignored.
The continued struggle of access to food for students in South Africa is a cause for concern and an urgent matter that needs to be addressed. Government feeding schemes are designed to help alleviate hunger among learners from primary school to high school level. Yet, even with these measures in place the problem of food insecurity persists.
Food insecurity refers to the physical unavailability of food where people are undernourished due to their lack of social or economic access to adequate food. It is worth emphasizing that food insecurity is not only the lack of food, but also a lack of access to nutritious and nourishing food.
Empty refrigerator with few consumable items. Photo: Simphiwe Maduma
Students without food or those who can only afford one meal a day are forced to attend classes on an empty stomach while waiting for lunchtime to receive their meal for the day. This poses serious implications in learning and concentration capacity and ability, therefore affecting students’ academic performance.
There is also the social well-being aspect of this problem for students such as difficulty in socializing. These students feel the need to hide their hunger and need for food to avoid being ostracized by their peers. This also affects their enthusiasm and ability to partake in campus life which forms part of socializing and engaging in new experiences.
The proportion of households in South Africa that experienced moderate to severe food insecurity was estimated at 19,7% in 2023. For students who come from such households, learning can be a nightmare.
FEATURED IMAGE: Small size empty takeaway container. PHOTO: Zanele S. Maduma
- Wits Vuvuzela, The plate divide: Food inequality in Joburg, December 2024
- Wits Vuvuzela, Food parcels, vouchers stave off hunger for Wits students, August 2020
