Ramaphosa urges retailers, government to make nutritious food affordable

PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa has called for urgent collaboration between government, business, and civil society to address South Africa's worsening food insecurity.

- HOPE NTANZI

In his weekly letter to the nation, he said the fight against hunger is a critical test of the country’s democratic progress.

Ramaphosa revealed that between 15 and 16 million South Africans currently face inadequate or severely inadequate access to food, despite the constitutional right to food and water.

He emphasised that South Africa is one of only 29 countries where this right is enshrined in the Constitution.

“Overcoming poverty and tackling the cost of living for South Africans is one of the strategic priorities of the Government of National Unity,’ he said.

“Our Constitution imposes a duty on the state to take reasonable legislative and other measures, within its available resources, to progressively realise this right”

Since 1994, successive administrations have adopted a multifaceted approach to hunger, including legislative reform, nutrition programmes in primary healthcare, and large-scale initiatives delivering food directly to communities and institutions.

Ramaphosa singled out the National School Nutrition Programme as one of the most effective. “This programme provides nutrition to more than 9 million learners from poor households on a daily basis,” he said.