Local worlds: Vulnerability and food insecurity in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa

Abstract

<jats:p>The overwhelming finding is that after more than a decade of democracy, the Eastern Cape (EC) province remains trapped in structural poverty. This shows in all aspects of its demographic, health and socio-economic profiles. Methods, measurements and statistics vary, but from the various studies and data sets one can attest that the majority of the population still lives in poverty. Despite the democratic transformation that began in South Africa in 1994, poverty, unemployment and inequality exist today along with the food insecurity that is symptomatic of them. Food insecurity in South Africa varies across its nine provinces, with the EC province frequently measured as the poorest province in the country. This article examines the extent to which the EC can be defined as vulnerable to food insecurity by using a review of current literature. These vulnerabilities are compounded by the environmental vulnerability factors of climate change and drought, which affect households’ ability to grow food. The elderly and children are affected by life cycle vulnerability factors, with children prone to malnutrition and the elderly unable to work to produce food. Race and gender are associated with vulnerability to food insecurity. Most of the people in the EC who are poor and are African, and a high percentage of women-headed households is poor. The vulnerability factors identified suggest that job creation and agricultural productivity may be useful ways of targeting food insecurity. Interventions need to take local contexts into account and focus on particular communities and their unique needs.</jats:p>

Social vulnerability and its association with food insecurity in the South African population: findings from a National Survey

“…We did, however, find some notable differences from previously reported regions of vulnerability [ 8 , 10 , 25 ]. Our data suggest that Mpumalanga was the most vulnerable province even though Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and Limpopo are the three provinces with the largest rural populations, many of whom are unemployed, living in poverty, and experiencing chronic food insecurity [ 8 , 10 , 25 ]. These discrepancies might be explained by the dynamic nature of social vulnerability, that is susceptible to changes during and following a public health threat such as COVID-19.…”

“…The finding that the prevalence of social vulnerability was higher in vulnerable groups (rural areas, older persons, Black African, without high school certificate, and low income, and female) corresponds with the vulnerable groups typically identified in existing literature [ 8 , 10 , 25 ]. We did, however, find some notable differences from previously reported regions of vulnerability [ 8 , 10 , 25 ].…”

“…The finding that the prevalence of social vulnerability was higher in vulnerable groups (rural areas, older persons, Black African, without high school certificate, and low income, and female) corresponds with the vulnerable groups typically identified in existing literature [ 8 , 10 , 25 ]. We did, however, find some notable differences from previously reported regions of vulnerability [ 8 , 10 , 25 ]. Our data suggest that Mpumalanga was the most vulnerable province even though Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and Limpopo are the three provinces with the largest rural populations, many of whom are unemployed, living in poverty, and experiencing chronic food insecurity [ 8 , 10 , 25 ].…”

“…Compared to their urban counterparts, rural areas are disproportionally less developed with poorly maintained infrastructure that deprives people of employment opportunities, basic services, and good quality education [ 8 , 10 , 25 ]. Although poverty is lower in urban areas than in rural areas [ 10 ], the rapid increase in urban population growth coupled with overcrowding caused by unplanned and informal built environments [ 28 ], and poor sanitation facilities increase vulnerability to multiple hazards.…”

The effect of the food insecurities in farming and non-farming households: lesson learnt from households in the Francis Baard district municipality, Northern Cape Province of South Africa

“…Consequently, the right to food is enshrined in the South African Constitution (David & Grobler, 2020). However, food insecurity is seen as a severe challenge during this current economic period compounded by the COVID 19 pandemic (Ngumbela, Khalema, & Nzimakwe, 2020). There have been contradictory reports regarding the food security status in the South African provinces.…”