Building a Powerful Movement
UAH is uniting civil society, activists and communities to demand change through mass mobilisation, advocacy, food literacy, protest, and litigation – inspired by the successful approaches of the TAC and Abahlali baseMjondolo.
Hunger isn’t about food scarcity – it’s about justice. In the context of South Africa’s Presidency of the G20 in 2025 and the launch by Brazil (during its G20 Presidency in 2024) of the Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty, a focus on ending hunger could not be more timely. The founding members of the UAH, as part of the ongoing struggle to realise the right to food in South Africa are building a national movement to demand urgent action on the following:
(These demands are a living document. We invite further inputs and we welcome comments and suggestions.)
Realise everyone’s constitutional right to food
Sections 27 and 28 of the Constitution (1996) commit the government to ensure that no person in South Africa goes hungry. But almost 30 years later, millions of South Africans are still malnourished. Interventions like the social grants are important, but not enough. We call on the government to take urgent steps to realise the constitutional right to food, and on civil society to hold the government – as duty-bearer – accountable to deliver this right.
Halve child stunting by 2030
South Africa is committed to the Sustainable Development Goals, including SDG 2 to end hunger, specifically stunting in children under 5 years of age. There has been zero progress on this target – stunting in South Africa has flatlined around 25% since the early 1990s. Several countries have made dramatic progress. Peru halved its rate from 28% to 14% in 7 years, after the President committed to reduce stunting by 5% in 5 years for under–5s (the “5-by-5-by-5 goal”). If Peru can do it, so can we. We call on the government to implement a coordinated programme of action immediately, to halve child stunting by 2030.
Increase the Child Support Grant to the upper-bound poverty line
Without social grants, poverty and malnutrition would be even higher. Raising the CSG payment to the upper-bound poverty line will significantly reduce child malnutrition. The CSG should immediately be increased from R530 (current payment) to R796 (the food poverty line) and as soon as possible to R976 (the cost of a basic nutritious diet for a child), then to R1,109 (the lower-bound poverty line) and then to R1,634 (upper-bound poverty line). Mothers-to-be should also receive a Maternal Support Grant from 12 weeks of pregnancy, to reduce low birthweight and improve nutritional outcomes for mothers and their children. All social grants must be index-linked, so payments increase to match inflation every year.
Extend ECD and school nutrition to all children at all times
The National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) has limited nutritional impact because school meals are only provided on weekdays during term times. The NSNP should ensure that school-aged children receive at least one meal every day, including weekends and school holidays. The NSNP also has two other pillars, which receive inadequate funding. School food gardens and nutrition education must be better resourced. The NSNP starts too late to address under–5 stunting. Government must implement programmes that deliver adequate nutrition to all young children in early learning programmes, all year round.
Make nutritious food accessible for all
Government needs to intervene to correct inequities in the food system. Most urgently, prices of essential food items should be regulated, to keep them affordable for low-income South Africans and to encourage shifts in consumption choices towards healthier, more nutritious diets. Positive dietary choices can also be promoted through the use of subsidies, discounts or vouchers on “best buy” foods, either for all consumers or for shoppers receiving social grants, who could be given vouchers for nutritious food items along with their cash transfers. Food subsidies or vouchers must include foods that are protein-rich (meat, fish, eggs, dairy), since protein is most inaccessible to the poor.
Ensure access to land for small-scale agriculture
Agrarian households (smallholder farmers and farm workers) are significantly poorer and more food insecure, especially the female-headed who survive below the food poverty line. Farm women who have food gardens have direct access to fresh vegetables, their dietary diversity improves, and they earn income by selling surplus production to meet their basic needs. The government’s land redistribution programme should prioritise ensuring access to land for poor agrarian and peri-urban households, especially female-headed, and providing support (water, agricultural inputs, extension advice) to farm that land.
Introduce programmes to address seasonal hunger
Seasonal workers such as farm workers have low incomes, few savings, and limited access to unemployment insurance. As a result, they face food insecurity and outright hunger during the off-season winter months. Seasonal hunger is unrecognised because it mainly affects marginalised people in rural areas. We call on the government to extend social security protections to seasonal and informal workers during periods of unemployment.
Halve food waste to release more food for hungry people
One-third of food produced in South Africa, 10 million of 31 million tons, goes to waste each year. This is equivalent to 30 billion meals, in a context where 20 billion meals are needed to end hunger. The government has committed to halving food waste by 2030. We call on the government to finalise and promulgate the (draft) food loss and waste strategy of 2023, and achieve its target of halving food waste in the next five years.
Introduce wealth taxes to finance anti-hunger interventions
Inequality in South Africa is the highest in the world, and has increased since 1994. Raising taxes on high-net-worth individuals addresses inequality and raises revenue that can be earmarked for tackling hunger – e.g., by increasing social grants or subsidising nutritious foods. Possible fiscal instruments include more progressive income tax, a financial transactions tax, and higher taxes on wealth including private property (land and buildings). We call on the government to reduce inequality and hunger by mobilising revenue from wealth taxes that will be earmarked for financing anti-hunger interventions.
Establish a Ministry of Food and a National Food Commission
The Department of Agriculture supports food production, and the Department of Social Development supports food consumption by delivering social grants and food parcels. No government ministry focuses specifically on hunger. The President appointed a Minister of Electricity in 2023 to resolve the electricity crisis, and loadshedding ended in 2024. The President should appoint a Minister of Food with a similar problem-solving mandate, to address the hunger crisis. A National Food Commission should be established, to monitor and coordinate all initiatives that focus on the goal of eradicating hunger in South Africa.
How You Can Take Action
Spread awareness
Help us make hunger a national priority.
Join the campaign
Support our advocacy efforts and policy demands.
Take to the streets
Participate in mobilisations, petitions, and direct action.
Strengthen the movement
Connect your organisation, community, or platform with the Union Against Hunger coalition.
Partners & Donors
We partner with communities, thought leaders, policymakers, and engaged citizens who recognise that food security is a human right, not a privilege. Your support helps us fuel advocacy campaigns, policy initiatives, and community-driven solutions that create lasting change.
