World Hunger Day Campaign – letter to UAH members and supporters

Dear friends,

On 1 May – Workers Day, we ignite the flame of resistance and solidarity with the official launch of the World Hunger Day (WHD) Campaign. This is not just a campaign – it is our annual national programme of action for food justice, dignity, and putting to an end to the crime of hunger in South Africa. From workers’ struggles for a living wage to community kitchens, we unite under one banner: Hunger is a Crime.

Below is the outline  of a Programme of Action, but we encourage all communities and organisations to make your own plans! It’s time to be seen standing up against hunger.

16 May – Stakeholder Meeting: Rally against Rising Food Prices

On16 May the UAH will convene a National Stakeholder Meeting (Rally) in Johannesburg, further details to be communicated in due course.

Civil society organisations, faith groups, trade unions, student leaders, community kitchens, social justice leaders and campaign partners are invited to strengthen mobilisation and secure practical commitments for action and solidarity toward World Hunger Day.

This is where strategy meets solidarity.

25 May – Food Justice Week Begins 

The week will start with a powerful social media ‘storm/blast’, with our messaging for WHD amplified through radio and TV interviews. A full social media calendar will promote and publicise UAH community activities nationwide, ensuring every action is visible, coordinated, and impactful.

27 May – Day of action to demand lower food prices, Nationwide pickets of Shoprite to demand lower prices

At least 16 UAH communities will rise together from Gauteng, Eastern Cape, Northern Cape, North West, Western Cape, Free State and KZN provinces. Each picket location will have a designated leader driving mobilisation and engagement, with support from community members for content creation. Shoprite will be shamed as a symbol of corporate greed at the expense of the poor.

28 May – World Hunger Day 

Chief Justice Breakfast Dialogue – we have invited the Chief Justice Mandisa Maya to engage UAH leaders in an urgent conversation on the meaning and duties arising from the Constitution’s right of everyone in SA to access sufficient food and basic nutrition.

Picket at the Minister of Agriculture’s Office – communities mobilise to demand accountability and transparency on the Food and Nutrition Security Council, and further make a call for public engagement in relation to the National Food and Nutrition Security Plan.

Social Media Campaigning, Messaging and Storytelling

• Beginning 1 May – Profile Picture Campaign – every platform flooded with solidarity towards Hunger Day linking our struggle to other causes speaking to poverty and inequality.
• Launch of “UAH – WHD Campaign” TikTok Series – creative resistance through digital advocacy.
• Release of Official Campaign Statement – our united declaration to the nation
• Instagram, TikTok and Facebook community testimonies on the cost of an empty stomach.

Why We Mobilise

In South Africa WHD is a rallying cry of action to end hunger and malnutrition. Hunger is violence. Hunger is injustice. Hunger is a crime against poor people. Together, we demand:

1. Accountability from government and corporations!
2. Affordable nutritious food for all!
3. Justice for children, mothers, workers and landless communities!

Our Call to Action

From Workers Day to World Hunger Day, every step builds momentum. Every picket, every post, every dialogue strengthens our collective power. This is a nationwide mobilisation – a movement that refuses silence in the face of hunger.

Let us rise. Let us act. Let us end the crime of hunger!