The nexus between urbanization and food insecurity in South Africa: does the type of dwelling matter?

Food insecurity in urban South Africa is situated in both historic and contemporary factors. This article argues that there is a need to reimagine and reconceptualise national, socio-ecclesial and theological responses to urban food insecurity in South Africa. We contend that the global and enduring nature of food insecurity is indicative of the violence of hunger and poverty and can be viewed as structural violence. While the church has since its inception been involved in feeding the hungry, the structural and systemic nature of food insecurity requires more nuanced theological responses and reflections. As a prophetic voice, the church and theological reflection and action are important partners in conversations, dialogue, measures and interventions geared towards the eradication of hunger and food insecurity in urban South Africa. A descriptive and evaluative method of enquiry was adopted in order to identify the historic structural and systemic factors that perpetuate food insecurity in South Africa. This article concludes that social inequality, economic disenfranchisement and poverty are as a result of structural inequalities that amount to structural violence inflicted on the most vulnerable of society.

This article maps food insecurity in South Africa and plumbs the data to women-headed households at the municipal level. Local contexts provide a better understanding of people's experiences by studying the impact their geographical location has on their economic status, and the impact their raced and gendered identities have on that experience. Localised information could also ensure that more nuanced policies are developed to address inequalities. Food insecurity is a marker of exclusion and poverty in urban and rural areas across South Africa, but women are more likely than men to be food insecure, especially in the rural areas. Data are combined from Statistics South Africa's Income and Expenditure Survey and Community Survey (both 2008) to arrive at a more accurate assessment of food insecurity at municipal level in South Africa. The National Department of Agriculture places food insecurity at 50%, while this study argues that approximately 64% of households in South Africa are food insecure, a result which has policy implications. Our study also uses data that provide a more nuanced approach that shows provincial and municipal variations that are much higher than the national average, which should support provincial and local government policies that address food insecurity more effectively. The article also argues that due to male-biased economic, cultural and community practices, women-headed households are most food insecure. In light of this information, the article provides a nuanced understanding of women's food insecurity in the country. We offer policy recommendations on how women's food insecurity could be reduced in the areas where it is most prevalent. The importance of gender-sensitive development policies, localised contextual knowledge, and innovative strategies that would assist women in their efforts to become food secure, particularly in rural areas across South Africa, are highlighted.

Food insecurity in South Africa remains a persistent challenge. Traditionally, food insecurity has been seen as affecting rural areas only, and this perspective had previously informed, and is still informing, policy and food security responses. South Africa is over 60% urbanised and yet policies and mandates regarding food security do not reflect this shift. This chapter seeks to answer the question ‘how food secure are South Africa’s cities?’, describing the state of food insecurity in South Africa’s cities, but also highlighting the specific nature of urban food insecurity. The chapter argues that food insecurity is the result of poorly framed and mandated policies, that food insecurity is driven by changes in the food system, and that spatial and structural issues also drive food insecurity. These challenges are reinforced in cities where the food insecure rely on the market as a means to ensure food availability. South Africa’s cities are food insecure and will remain so within the current market and governance regimes.

Quantitative Indicators from a Food Expenditure Survey Can Be Used to Target the Food Insecure in South Africa

Food insecurity in South Africa: To what extent can social grants and consumption of wild foods eradicate hunger?

This study aims to integrate underutilized crops (UCs) into the food system to address climate change impacts, and food -water insecurity. UCs have immense potential to mitigate food shortages, yet their role remains largely unexplored in mainstream agricultural and food security strategies. A multidisciplinary approach using social psychology, resource-based theory (RBT), and a new ecological paradigm was used to investigate factors influencing UCs adoption and their potential contribution to water and food insecurity in South Africa. The water poverty index (WPI) and household food insecurity access score (HFIAS) were used to determine the water and food insecurity status of rural households. The study found that UCs cultivation was driven by awareness, access to extension advisory services, and climate information. The findings indicate that adopting UCs significantly improves water and food insecurity in South Africa. Consequently, households that integrated UCs into their farming systems experienced higher WPI scores, reflecting improved water availability and conservation, as UCs require less water than conventional crops. Likewise, lower HFIAS values suggest that UCs enhance food insecurity by diversifying diets, stabilizing food access, and reducing seasonal hunger. Statistically, households in Limpopo, Mpumalanga, and North-West provinces who adopted UCs saw 25.18 (21%), 31.03 (26%), and 28.77 (24%) rise in WPI and HFIAS compared to those who did not embrace UCs, respectively. These results highlight the potential of UCs as climate-resilient crops that mitigate water scarcity and food insecurity, making them a viable strategy for enhancing rural livelihoods amid climate change. Therefore, prioritizing UCs cultivation could build more resilient agricultural systems, address water scarcity and improve food security.

Much of the contemporary literature on food security has focused on the rural sector. However, within the current context of high demographic growth, rapid urbanization and rising urban poverty which characterizes much of Sub-Saharan Africa, urban food insecurity cannot continue to be ignored. This study therefore examines the vulnerability of poor households to food insecurity in the challenging urban environment of Harare in Zimbabwe, an acute example of a city (and country) ‘in crisis’. Findings from qualitative and quantitative research demonstrate severe food insecurity characterized by critical food shortages and the consumption of narrower diets among poor households in the city. Household vulnerability to food insecurity stemmed from a range of factors, including: high levels of unemployment and poverty; high dependency ratios; low levels of house ownership; hyperinflation; skyrocketing food prices; and the general collapse of the formal food system. Vulnerability to food insecurity was further exacerbated by a prolonged adverse socio-political climate that undermined national economic recovery and reduced the livelihood opportunities available to the urban poor. The paper concludes that in Harare, as in most urban areas of the developing world, the urban poor have become highly vulnerable to food insecurity.

HIV/AIDS and food insecurity

PurposeHousehold food insecurity in South Africa is a pervasive public health challenge. Although its link to chronic health conditions is well established, its relationship to mental illness, particularly major depression, is not well-understood. Despite KwaZulu-Natal Province being the epicenter of the drug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) epidemic, and having the largest share of poverty in South Africa, this relationship remains unexamined. This study investigated the association between major depressive episode (MDE) and household food insecurity among individuals with MDR-TB.MethodsWe enrolled and interviewed 141 newly admitted microbiologically confirmed MDR-TB inpatients at a specialized TB hospital in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. Logistic regression models were fitted to assess the relationship between MDE and household food insecurity, while accounting for socio-demographic status (e.g., age, gender, education, marital status, social grant status, income, and preference for living in one’s community).ResultsThe prevalence of MDE and household food insecurity was 11.35% and 21.01%, respectively. MDE was significantly associated with household food insecurity (aOR 4.63, 95% CI 1.17–18.38). Individuals who are female (aOR 6.29, 95% CI 1.13–35.03), young (aOR 8.86, 95% CI 1.69–46.34), have low educational attainment (aOR 6.19, 95% CI 1.70–22.59) and receive social grants (aOR 7.60, 95% CI 2.36–24.48) were most at risk of household food insecurity.ConclusionsMDE in individuals with MDR-TB was significantly associated with household food insecurity, independent of socio-economic status. Although MDR-TB is not exclusively a disease of the poor, individuals from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds (e.g., female, young adults, low education, and social grant recipients) were more likely to experience household food insecurity. Our study underscores the need to address the co-occurring cycles of food insecurity and untreated MDE in South Africa.

Various research results point out poverty, inadequate food production and inadequate distribution as the main culprits for food insecurity in many African countries. This article wishes to contribute to the existing knowledge on food insecurity and concentrate on South Africa and investigate whether food symbolism can also lead to systematic food insecurity and discrimination of some people. Since the official end of political apartheid in 1994, there have been great improvements in terms of grants, aid, increase in food production and change of structures. Nevertheless, food insecurity still persists. This research seeks to uncover new facts concerning the cause for food insecurity in South Africa. It brings to the fore that instead of focusing on structural changes only, researchers need to re-evaluate some of the cultural and religious beliefs attached to food production, distribution and consumption. The article also hopes to highlight that the Eucharist which is a centre of Christian life ought to unite the faith-based communities and confront the vice of injustice in all its forms which exacerbates the problem of food insecurity. Christian encounter with Christ through the Eucharist forms the believers into a community of brothers and sisters and empowers people to participate in the liberating mission of the Lord. This solution would go to the roots of the moral problem of food insecurity and put institutions and structures on a new, more humane and beneficial foundation.

This study examines how the smoking behavior of household head impacts the food insecurity status of household in South Africa, with a focus on smoking behavior transition. The study used the fifth wave of the 2017 National Income Dynamics Study survey. Additionally, the smoking transition variable was computed using smoking status in waves 3 and 5 of the survey. Foster-Greer-Thorbecke food insecurity index, descriptive statistics, and logit regression techniques were deployed in the study. Surprisingly, the analysis shows that households headed by current smokers have a lower prevalence of food insecurity (compared to households whose heads are nonsmokers). Similarly, household food insecurity prevalence is lesser for homes whose head initiated smoking behavior or remained a smoker compared to those whose head remained a nonsmoker or transition to nonsmoking. Nevertheless, the findings from the applied logit regression suggested that household food insecurity significantly increases when a household head is a current smoker and a consistent smoker. The finding indicates that household head smoking behavior does contribute to household food insecurity in South Africa. The need to address food insecurity at the household level is a compelling argument for tobacco smoking cessation or control in addition to health consequence concerns.

Urbanization is one of the major social changes in developing regions. This has influenced urban food insecurity and malnutrition in South Africa where poverty, unemployment and high food prices are dominant and influencing dietary change. The study considered dietary diversities and food security of households in four peri-urban settlements in South Africa through household surveys with 314 randomly selected households. Dietary diversity was generally low with high levels of food insecurity across the peri-urban sites, with male-headed households generally worse off than female-headed households. There was high dependence on food purchasing in all sites, although female-headed households were more likely than male-headed households to supplement food purchases with other food strategies such as urban agriculture, collection from open spaces and receiving donations. Food insecurity was associated with high poverty levels, unemployment and low education levels. A coherent response that effectively addresses food and nutrition insecurity challenges in peri-urban areas is an important component in addressing food insecurity in peri-urban settings of South Africa. Such a response should support localized and diverse “context specific” food systems which are sustainable and healthier and make food more affordable.

There is growing evidence of urban poverty in and around cities in sub-Saharan Africa in the form of food and nutrition insecurity. Although many studies have been done across sub-Saharan Africa on urban agriculture, food and nutrition insecurity, little is known about the association of urban agriculture to household food and nutrition insecurity along the urban–rural continuum, especially in West African cities. Therefore, a survey was carried out between August and September 2014 in and around Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso), using a transect approach to guide the data collection. The purpose of this study was to understand the dynamics of urban, periurban and rural agriculture and its association with household food and nutrition insecurity. A total of 240 households participated in the survey. From these households, data were collected on 179 women of reproductive age (15–49 yr) and 133 children under the age of 5 yr to compute Women's Dietary Diversity Scores (WDDS) and other anthropometric indices. The results of this study provide a general picture of crop production which is inclined to subsistence and income generation. Households in rural and periurban areas were more engaged in crop and livestock production compared with their urban area counterparts. Households in periurban areas had the highest relative proportion (54%) of food insecurity (household food insecurity access scale (HFIAS) > 11), compared with urban areas (39%) and rural areas (45%). At the same time the periurban households had the highest relative proportion of stunting and wasting prevalence compared with urban and rural households. Households in the rural areas had the highest dietary diversity (WDDS ≥ 6), compared with periurban and urban households. Households keeping livestock significantly experienced less wasting (weight-for-height index (WHZ)) (coef = −0.15;P= 0.008) by a factor of 0.15, and overweight (body mass index (BMI)-for-age (BAZ)) (coef = −0.12;P= 0.015) by a factor of 0.12 compared with households not doing livestock keeping. Households involved in crop production significantly experienced more food insecurity, HFIAS (coef. = 2.55;P= 0.042) by a factor of 2.55 compared with households without crop production. The complexity of periurban areas coupled with the scourge of food and nutrition insecurity will require more periurban agriculture and food policy consideration.

Food insecurity is influenced by multiple determinants including socioeconomic status, and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) was established to bridge the nutritional gap between low- and high-income households. Food insecurity continues to be a growing disparity among rural and urban communities in the country. Few studies analyze both rural and urban food insecurity, and none do so at the state or county levels. Therefore, we sought to understand the impact of socioeconomic factors on food insecurity in urban and rural households at the state and county levels. We examined urban and rural counties in Pennsylvania (PA), a state with moderate food insecurity rates that are consistently below the national average. We expected that the rate of food insecurity in rural counties would be higher than in urban counties. We measured the incidence of food insecurity among rural and urban households in PA. We used the predicted trends produced by the United States Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service (USDA ERS), based on surveys given to individuals living in rural areas. We analyzed the USDA ERS data to compare the levels of food insecurity, considering the data for low and very low food security in rural counties in PA. To measure food insecurity in the urban counties, we used data provided by the hunger-relief organization Feeding America.To assess the relationship between food insecurity between rural and urban counties, we examined the data provided by census.gov in the following categories: income, household size, family determinants (head-of-household), and government assistance. These determinants were analyzed in comparison to food insecurity from the years 2015 to 2019 in both rural and urban households. Based on our data analysis between rural and urban areas, SNAP alone is not sufficient to address levels of food insecurity in rural areas. We found that about 1 in 7 rural households receive SNAP benefits compared to about 1 in 11 urban households. Yet the food insecurity rates were still higher in rural counties than in urban counties, at 11.82% and 10.76%, respectively. Overall, more households with women heads of household receive SNAP than households with men heads of households at the county, state, and national levels. Lastly, the average income in rural counties is over $10,000 less than the average in urban counties, and almost $10,000 less than the state average. Hopefully, these results will instill a sense of urgency that will influence new policies to support both rural and urban households in different capacities to decrease the food security gap among American households. Since PA tends to be below the national average for food insecurity, we hope that this will prompt action in above-average states as well.

Food security remains central in the United Nation Development Agenda (2030) as highlighted in the Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs 2). Nonetheless, there is still limited literature on food security in African countries and the drivers of urban food insecurity remain less understood, especially in Eswatini where urban food insecurity continues to rise. This study investigated the levels of food insecurity in the low income households of Msunduza in Mbabane and the coping strategies employed by Msunduza residents to deal with food shortages. The study sought to respond to the following research questions: What are the levels of food insecurity in Msunduza? What are the determinants of food insecurity in Msunduza? How do Msunduza residents cope with food insecurity challenges? To respond to the research questions, the study adopted a quantitative approach based on a case study research design. Data was collected from 91 heads of households, selected through systematic sampling procedure. The results reveal that majority of households in Msunduza are food insecure, with a larger proportion in the mildly food insecure category. Household income, household size, employment status and gender of the household head were found to be among the key determinants of food (in)security in the area. In cases of food shortages, households in the informal settlement of Msunduza employ different coping strategies which include reducing food intake (size of meals), begging, selling of household assets and skipping of meals, among others. The paper recommended that food security interventions be considered for low income urban households, more particularly, female headed households which tend to be more vulnerable to food insecurity.