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South Africa is facing a silent emergency: food insecurity is tightening its grip on millions, and university campuses are no exception.

At the University of the Western Cape (UWC), students gathered for a Hunger Hearing to confront the realities of hunger not as a distant rural issue, but as a daily struggle in lecture halls, libraries and residences.

Hosted in partnership with the Institute for Social Development (ISD), the DSTI-NRF Centre of Excellence in Food Security, and the Union Against Hunger (UAH), the hearing formed part of a national campaign to expose the human cost of food insecurity and push for systemic change.

According to Statistics South Africa, nearly one in four households experience inadequate or severely inadequate access to food, and more than one in four children have stunted growth, which impairs their ability to learn. Most undernourished children never even make it to university.

Stephen Devereux, convenor of the hearing and professor in Development Studies at UWC, opened the event with concerns about food security among students.

“Student hunger gets mentioned now and then, but then it disappears. Many are still facing challenges, and we want to hear their testimonies and ideas about how existing interventions can be improved,” said Prof Devereux 

One of the most powerful testimonies came from a PhD student, who described how hunger strips away dignity and exposes students, especially women, to exploitation.

“Because students don’t have enough mechanisms of support, they adopt dangerous ways of surviving. Hunger has a gendered side – in most cases, it is women who are exposed,” said the student who wanted to remain anonymous. 

She explained how young women are drawn into unsafe environments near campus, sometimes coerced into transactional relationships just to afford food or send money home.

“Hunger forces you to lose sight of your primary role here, to study and succeed. Many of us are breadwinners, sending portions of our bursaries or salaries home. That responsibility makes students even more vulnerable.”

While student-led initiatives have long carried the burden of support, the students emphasised the need for stronger institutional mechanisms. One such effort is Udubs Cares, run by Institutional Advancement at UWC, a programme that provides food parcels and basic necessities to students in need.

“The Udubs Care initiative has helped many students. It’s one of the few institutional efforts that consistently tries to meet students where they are. But even that programme is stretched, as demand often exceeds supply.”

Solutions provided by students called for food banks to be redesigned, alumni communities to be engaged, and for students to be included in shaping long-term solutions. Another idea was for nutritious meals to be offered at affordable prices at campus dining halls.

The UAH plans to host similar hearings across universities, townships and farming communities nationwide. Findings will be presented on World Food Day, 16 October 2025, in a policy forum aimed at influencing government and institutional responses.