VIDEO: The Scavenger Economy: A story of two young men on the streets of Johannesburg

Lebo Radebe and Sibusiso Chiba are two of the many homeless people prowling the city of Johannesburg.

They are scavengers for food, for drugs, for shelter on the bitterly cold pavements, for anything that can make their lives a little better.

Poverty and hunger have brought these two young men together.

They are among the more than 24 million people who go hungry in South Africa.  With unemployment and poverty levels rising, the number of people who are food secure could increase. While other people scavenge for food in the waste dumps and dustbins, Sbusiso and Lebo collect and sell scrap metal.

Although they support each other and look out for one another, they are not always in agreement about their value system as they eke out a life on the street.

This video is a production of the 2014 Wits Journalism short course in television.