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The Church’s approach to the hunger during COVID – 19

Mpho Putu 04/2020 The world is living through unprecedented times. The coronavirus (COVID-19) is causing anxiety, uncertainty, and disruption. As is often the case, people living in hunger and poverty are likely to suffer the most. Though we may feel powerless and overwhelmed, we are not. Now is the time for the Church to heed God’s call to care for the “least among us.”  COVID-19 has been slowly creeping into South Africa. As we seek to ensure our families’ health and safety, to many people, food has never seemed so important, both as a source of nutrition and, for many, of comfort. The question is whether, as economic disruption continues, we can stave off a pandemic-related food crisis. What and how we eat affects our health and wellbeing. We depend on farmers to continue working their fields, on supermarket cashiers to show up at their jobs, and on drivers to deliver our food to markets or front doors. But there are strains. In some places, food is becoming scarce. A
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No one should go to bed hungry!!

The rising cost of fuel next week will lead to food increase, which will put more families in a more desperate state. More and more households will feel the effects of the rising cost of living Hunger can refer to the discomfort, weakness, illness, or pain caused by a long-term lack of food. Although South Africa  is said to be food secured, more than 11 million households in 2018 experienced food insecurity at times during the year—a condition that can include household members going hungry because they can’t afford enough food, as well as having to skip meals, compromise on nutrition, or rely on emergency food sources such as Community  Nutrition and Development Centres, foodbanks or soup kitchens. Hunger and food insecurity are large and complex problems, in part because they are closely tied to poverty—a condition that has prevailed since the beginning of recorded history. The presence of hunger and food insecurity in South Africa raises questions of why they prevai
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Food Security: Establishment of Food Distribution Networks in South Africa - Mpho Putu

Food security is a condition related to the supply of food, and individuals’ access to it. The final report of the 1996 World Food Summit states that food security “exists when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life”. The Four Pillars of Food Security 1.     Availability:  Food availability relates to the supply of food to production, distribution, and exchange. A variety of factors determine Food production such as land ownership and use; soil management; crop selection, breeding, and management; livestock breeding and management; and harvesting. Crop production is not required for a country to achieve food security. 2.     Access;  Food access refers to the affordability and allocation of food, as well as the preferences of individuals and households. Poverty can limit access to food, and can also increase how vulnerable an individual o
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Basic Concepts of Food Security - Mpho Putu

Food security is defined as the availability of food and one's access to it. A household is considered food secure when its occupants do not live in hunger or fear of starvation. Stages of food insecurity range from food secure situations to full-scale famine. The World Food Summit of 1996 defined food security as existing "when all people at all times have access to sufficient, safe, nutritious food to maintain a healthy and active life". Food Security: The World Food Summit of 1996 defined food security as existing "when all people at all times have access to sufficient, safe, nutritious food to maintain a healthy and active life". Commonly, the concept of food security is defined as including both physical and economic access to food that meets people's dietary needs as well as their food preferences. Household food security exists when all members, at all times, have access to enough food for an active, healthy life. Food security incorporates
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The Household food and Nutrition Security Programme in South Africa - Mpho Putu

South Africa is characterised by a situation of food security at the national level but not at the household level for much of the population. Due to food insecurity, many families lack sustainable physical or economic access to enough safe, nutritious, and socially acceptable food for a healthy and productive life. Food insecurity may be chronic, seasonal, or temporary. Food insecurity and malnutrition result in catastrophic amounts of human suffering. The World Health Organization estimates that approximately 60 percent of all childhood deaths in the developing world are associated with chronic hunger and malnutrition. Hunger is a result of poverty in South Africa is high and has affected some people more than others. Poverty is a condition which is associated with lack of basic needs such as water, healthcare and food, sufficient access to social and economic services and few opportunities for formal income generation. Poverty denies children the right to primary healthcare,
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