The recognition that many university students in South Africa face food insecurity and hunger is not new. At a National Colloquium on Access to Food for Students in South African Tertiary Institutions in Cape Town in 2018, I presented evidence showing that, even in high-income countries like Australia and the United States, students are more likely to be food insecure than the general population. In South Africa, more than half of students surveyed at the University of the Free State and the University of KwaZulu-Natal were food insecure in the 2010s. A survey at the University of the Western Cape in 2021 found that two-thirds (68.5%) of 760 students surveyed had experienced food insecurity during that year.

The high prevalence of hunger among students is hardly surprising. Many students, especially at historically disadvantaged institutions (HDI) like UWC, come from poor, mainly Black African and Coloured, families. They grew up in poverty, often receiving the Child Support Grant and school meals from the National School Nutrition Programme. Getting to university from such a difficult background is a major achievement in itself, but these students arrive on campus with limited resources, and they struggle to meet their basic needs.

In August 2025, the Institute for Social Development (ISD), the DSTI-NRF Centre of Excellence in Food Security, and the Union Against Hunger (UAH) convened a ‘Hunger Hearing’ at UWC. Several students told us about the challenges they faced in transitioning from home to university, losing family support (e.g. home-cooked meals), school meals and the Child Support Grant (when they turned 18), then waiting months for their first National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) payment. More than 60% of UWC students rely on NSFAS funding. NSFAS was created to provide financial support to undergraduate students who lack the means to cover their fees and living costs, while they are in tertiary education and not yet in full-time employment.

But, even when it arrives, “NSFAS doesn’t provide enough. You still have to find a job to sustain yourself.” Students face a tough trade-off: “Do I get a job to feed myself but take longer to graduate, or do I go hungry and finish as quickly as possible, because my family is waiting for me to start contributing?” Hunger compromises academic performance. Some drop out because they cannot concentrate in class, or they cannot juggle working and studying at the same time. “Hunger shatters dreams.”

What is being done?

Many universities supplement NSFAS allowances with targeted food programmes, run either by university administrations or students themselves, supported by corporates like Tiger Brands Foundation and Bidvest Bank, or civil society organisations like Rise Against Hunger Africa, Gift of the Givers, and the Catholic Church.

The University of the Witwatersrand runs the Masidleni Daily Meal Project and Wits Food Bank, which receives fresh produce from the Wits Food Garden. The University of the Free State has run a No Student Hungry bursary programme since 2011, and has adopted a Food Environment Strategy to promote a healthy food environment on campus. Nelson Mandela University runs a Meal-a-Day campaign during mid-year and end-of-year exams, providing a nutritious meal (starch + protein + two vegetables) at a subsidised price. Tiger Brands delivers food packs to hundreds of students at NMU in the first week of every month.

The University of KwaZulu-Natal established a Food Security Task Team in 2021, while the Durban University of Technology runs the Phakimpilo Food Security Programme. “Phakimpilo works with civil society partners to assist students who have not received financial aid or are awaiting funding”. Needy students at UKZN and DUT also receive monthly food parcels from the Student Food Security Programme of Gift of the Givers.

The University of Cape Town runs a Food Programme, acknowledging that “student hunger is hidden and stigmatised and therefore our response seeks to eliminate stigma and to promote the dignity and agency of students.” UCT’s Food Sovereignty Programme provides a monthly pack of food and groceries to students who experience food insecurity.

At the University of the Western Cape, a Student Nutrition and Wellness programme was launched in 2017, in partnership with Tiger Brands. A food bank was established on campus that disburses basic food hampers to needy students. In addition, UWC recently launched the Feed the Need campaign, which aims “to combat student hunger during NSFAS delays”. An estimated 10,000 students at UWC need food support between the start of the academic year in February and the first payment of NSFAS allowances, usually in April. UWC is calling for donations of cash or food from staff and alumni, corporates, philanthropic organisations, and the public.

What else should be done?

Even though most universities have formal or informal initiatives in place for supporting their needy students, hunger persists on South Africa’s campuses. Which interventions are working well? What best practices can other universities learn from? Action research is a good place to start.

1. An up-to-date review of literature on student hunger in South Africa and internationally, mapping interventions and any available evidence of their coverage, cost and impact.
2. More facilitated ‘hunger hearings’ at campuses across the country, to record and amplify the lived experiences of students who face food insecurity.
3. Cross-campus collaboration among students (WhatsApp groups, Zoom meetings) to share their experiences and brainstorm ideas about solutions.
4. Learning exchange visits by university administrators responsible for dealing with student hunger to their counterparts at other universities.

The Hunger Hearing at UWC in 2025 identified three priority areas for intervention. First, restore dining halls that provide nutritious meals for students at affordable prices, based on expert advice from UWC dieticians to ensure nutritional adequacy. Second, revive food gardens at UWC that were closed during Covid-19, to make healthy, fresh food accessible for students. Third, a Nutrition Framework should regulate food sold on campus, to control ‘junk food’ outlets and ensure students don’t have to travel off campus to buy affordable, nutritious food.

Summing up

There is a crisis of ‘hidden hunger’ among students on university campuses throughout South Africa. NSFAS is failing to address this crisis adequately. ‘Fees Must Fall’ focused on the visible costs of tertiary education (fees) but not enough on the hidden costs (food and the negative effects of hunger). There are numerous ad hoc responses by universities, by students and by civil society to fill the gaps. These interventions are vital, but underfunded and uncoordinated.

Sustainable poverty reduction and radical transformation of South Africa’s economy and society are impossible without a substantial increase in the number of Black graduates. The crisis of student hunger must be addressed urgently and systematically, for the future of our students and the future of South Africa.

Biography

Prof Stephen Devereux. Image: DSI-NRF Centre of Excellence in Food Security (CoE-FS)

• Professor Stephen Devereux is a development economist with 25 years of experience in food security and social protection in 13 African countries, including three years heading a Rural Research Programme at the University of Namibia and one year researching household drought responses in rural Ghana. He has been a Fellow of the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) at the University of Sussex since 1996, where he founded the Centre for Social Protection in 2005. Dr Devereux has been an Extraordinary Professor at the University of the Western Cape since 2013.
• In 2016, he was awarded a SA-UK Research Chair in Social Protection for Food Security by the National Research Foundation (NRF) and the Newton Fund, affiliated to the DST-NRF Centre of Excellence in Food Security and the Institute for Social Development. He has (co-)authored or (co-)edited nine books on food security, famine and social protection, and has published more than 70 journal articles. He was a founding associate editor of the journal Food Security. He has worked for numerous international agencies, provided policy advice to many governments and led evaluations of 16 projects and programs in Africa.
• He served on the South African Statistics Council for more than ten years, and he is a Member of the Academy of Science in South Africa, chairing the Science for the Reduction of Poverty and Inequality Committee. He represents the Academy on the Science for Poverty Eradication Committee of the International Academic Partnership.
• Dr Devereux has supervised 11 PhD students and more than 50 Masters students to completion. He has lectured at IDS since 1996 and at ISD since 2013. He has delivered conference papers and seminars in Africa, Europe, Australia and USA, and presented training sessions on over 70 courses.