15 million South Africans don’t get enough to eat every day: 4 solutions

The South African government pays out 19 million social grants a month, or 26 million if the 9 million recipients of the special social relief of distress grant are included. Without these cash transfers, poverty and malnutrition in the country would be even higher. But they are inadequate, especially in a context of high and rising food prices.

At least 15 million South Africans suffer from food insecurity. That means they don’t have enough nutritious food to live healthy lives.

This is due to a combination of factors, including unemployment, poverty, inequality and food system failures.

More than 1,000 children die from malnutrition each year. This compares unfavourably with 350 child deaths from malnutrition in Brazil, which has more than three times South Africa’s population, and 269 child deaths in Colombia, which has about the same per capita income as South Africa.

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